RIG VEDA
by natanije
Summary: Uchiha Itachi is a lot of things: a genius, kin murderer, traitor, S-rank missing nin. Uchiha Sasuke acknowledges all that. But ultimately, he's still Aniki. Semi-SI!Sasuke
1. Drowning (I can't get back up)

**RIG=VEDA**

 **Summary: Uchiha Itachi is a lot of things: a genius, kin murderer, traitor, S-rank missing nin. Uchiha Sasuke acknowledges all that. But ultimately, he's still Aniki. Semi-SI!Sasuke**

 **Author's note: Um. I have no excuses as to why I publish this instead of continuing EI (In which, I will, eventually) other than the plot bunny has taken over my mind and I just** _ **have to**_ **write this down.**

 **This won't be as long as EI will be, I presume, since this is simply written out of whim, and I may or may not stop the fic before it even reaches Shippuden, much less Kaguya Arc and the whole Moon Eye Plan shit. Nevertheless, this is my second SI OC Naruto fic, and I hope you enjoy it.**

 **Warnings:** not much description, identity crisis, brother complex.

.

The memory rushes in like a big ocean wave akin to a tsunami, slamming into a three year old Uchiha Sasuke without any remorse and the boy, who was busy playing with kitten ears keels over all of a sudden, not unlike being swept over by a harsh tide, startling an eight year old Uchiha Itachi—who, by that point, was crying soundlessly, his sharingan still on through all that tears.

"Sasuke? Sasuke!" The older boy reaches over, touching his little brother's tiny shoulders with barely concealed distress when Sasuke _doesn't_ respond. The kitten ears clatters to the ground as Sasuke's small fists reach up to his head in order to clutch his hair and pulling and pulling and _pulling_ —

He lets out a croaking sound similar to a dying cat, ironic considering what was on his head mere moments ago and Itachi is so _so_ close to call out for his mother because _what is happening to his little brother?!_

"Sasuke! Sasuke! What's wrong? Sasuke!"

Then Sasuke just—stops.

Uchiha Sasuke, his beloved otouto, lifts his head in an agonizingly slow moments, beady black eyes staring up at him with flickering emotions too quick for even Itachi to discern.

And the younger boy, much to his shock, bursts into tears before he falls unconscious.

Itachi doesn't remember what he sees, when his little brother falls over and he just _screams_ for his mother and father and how he trembles with fright and worry because he doesn't _understand_ what is happening as his parents rush over to his side. His mother takes one look at Sasuke's crumpled, unconscious form before she takes him in one swoop, and rushes to the hospital without Fugaku even prompting her to.

His father kneels down on one knee and asks the obviously distressed eight year old boy, "what happened?"

Itachi can only answer, "I don't know," and oh how much he hates that fact.

He tells on how Sasuke suddenly fell and cried before he fell unconscious, and his father's look is grim before he nods and takes Itachi into his arms and rushes over to the hospital where his mother and Sasuke must be.

It is only when the doctor says that he is most definitely alright and will wake up in no time ( _"He's probably just tired,"_ the doctor says and Itachi wants to demand what kind of exhaustion is it that made a three year old to fall unconscious without even a single hint of fatigue on his face mere moments ago? Surely this doctor is slightly insane, or idiotic) and when his mother reassures him that there is nothing wrong with Sasuke's chakra pathways either (" _I've checked, Itachi, it's alright_ ," and well, he trusts his mother more than the idiotic doctor for sure) when Itachi _remembers_ what he sees.

A flicker of red in wide obsidian orbs.

The Sharingan.

On his _little brother._

Itachi has to bite his bottom lip in order not to tell this particular discovery to his father.

He must be wrong.

It can't be.

He's only _three_.

It must be a trick of the light.

Sasuke can't possibly awaken his sharingan, can he?

After all, he never hears of a sharingan awakening thanks to seeing your older _gaining_ it. And nothing in particular happened that day other than Sasuke taking a long look at Itachi's sharingan before he breaks out into the usual toothy smile.

Itachi takes in a shuddering breath, and decides to wait and see.

.

What slams to my mind first and foremost is the suffocating feeling of being unable to breathe and that I'm drowning, drowning, _drowning_ and I can't pull myself out—nobody is around to pull myself up and I want to breathe, I want to breathe I want to—

But, but I'm not drowning.

But I am drowning.

But I am _not_.

Am I drowning? Or am I not?

 _BUT I AM DROWNING—BUT I AM NOT—_

I am not drowning, I'm with Aniki, I'm playing with kitty ears and it's fun and _why am I playing with kitty ears? I'm seventeen I'm too old to play with kitty ears—_ and how big is seventeen? That sounds like a really big number because I can only count to ten and isn't ten after nine and _seventeen is ten plus seven, dummy, how can you not remember_ —

And I—

I see mom, clinging to a pole as I got swept over by the wave and I reached out, yelling _Mom, Mom help me, help, help, help,_ while trying not to swallow too much water as I flail about and I see her wide, terrified eyes looking away from me to grab the nearest object to pull herself up the water and to the safe part of a random house's roof and I stare at her in disbelief, in anger and shock and betrayal before something slams into me and I—

And I _drown_.

That's…

That's wrong.

I never see that kind of flood before, my mother doesn't have freckles and her hair is not in braids, my mother is kind and loving and she's way beautiful than that _treacherous poor excuse of a mother how can you abandon me this way wHY DID YOU ABANDON ME TO DIE YOU COWARD_ and I certainly have never drowned before.

I spend time in my house, with toys, with mother, with father, with Aniki.

Ani—

 _Aniki?_

My mind reels to Aniki and his name and his eyes and I—

Flashes of memories, of moments, of _animations and movies and games and fanfictions_ flash through my mind before I realize, belatedly, my own name.

Sasuke?

That—

No. No, no, no, no, nO, NO.

I'm not Sasuke.

But… But I am! Why do I think of myself as Sasuke but not Sasuke but I am Sasuke but I'm not—

I pull on my hair, pulling and pulling as I try to think _which one is right? Who am I? Who am I?_

I'm Sasuke.

 _No I'm not._

I'm Sasuke!

 _No I'm not!_

I'm Sasuke!

I AM NOT! Sasuke is a figment of imagination, a boy too caught up with revenge to see the big picture and who makes so much bad choices in his life and I can't be Sasuke, there's no way I'm Sasuke, my name is—my name is—

My… My name?

My name is…?

It's—

"…suke! Wha—….rong? Sasuke!"

I freeze, my racing mind stops as I register the fact that I _know_ that voice. It's Aniki, I remind myself, and I look up, not knowing why I even hesitate because it's Aniki, I shouldn't hesitate but _he's just a product of one man's imagination_ but he's not and I—

I look up and I see Aniki and I think _he's so small, isn't he supposed to be bigger and taller?_ And I see his worried look even as sounds and images fill up my head once more ( _"If you want to kill me, despise me, hate me, and live in an unsightly way—"_ ) and I see him older and so tired and weary of the world and smiling one last time as he does that forehead poke—( _"Forgive me, Sasuke. This will be the last time."_ )

I burst out into tears as I _see_ and _realize_ — **tr** _ **a**_ _i_ t **o** r **,** _ **m**_ **u** rd _ **er**_ _e_ **r, m** ar **t** _ **y**_ **r, m** _ **Y B**_ **i g** _ **B**_ R **O** t _H_ _ **e**_ **r.**

My name—

My name is—

( _"No matter what, I will love you always._ ")

My name is Sasuke.

.

 **Well that was a wild ride.**

 **Chocolate chip cookies for your thoughts?**


	2. Screaming (Someone please help me)

**RIG=VEDA 2**

 **So it has come to my attention that Rigveda is something that is p much known in Hindu? I gotta say, I did not know about that until one of my friends pointed it out. The RIG=VEDA that I'm using is based off of a song called EXEC RIG=VEDA by Noriko Mitose. So, meh.**

 **I looked up the actual Rigveda and on wiki I found Indra and Ashura being mentioned there. Ashura, not so much. But Indra quite a lot apparently. And isn't that just a wonderful coincidence?**

 **I'm not going to change the title, unless any of you find it offensive to have that as the title? I don't know, as I mentioned earlier, it isn't based off of the real Rigveda, it is based off of a friggin'** _ **song title**_ **.**

 **So yeah, no changing titles unless you're truly offended.**

 **Also, this is an IMPORTANT note: if you are expecting this to be as elaborate, descriptive and long as EI, don't even get your hopes up. This story is written on a whim and is continued on a same whim. Therefore I'm writing what I want, however I want, whenever I want. I'd probably put more emphasis on feelings and dialogues than anything descriptive for this.**

 _ **Anyway**_ **, thank you for those who favorited and followed this story. This won't be as elaborate as EI, but I appreciate your support nevertheless. Enjoy!**

 **Warnings:** confusing thought structures, brother complex, hints of trauma

.

When Uchiha Sasuke wakes up, he jumps out of the hospital bed to hug his brother. The older one doesn't refuse the hug and readily hugs the child back, whispering sweet nothings and asking _'what's wrong, Sasuke? What's wrong?_ '.

Uchiha Sasuke is not an idiot even before those memories— _water and mother and the suffocating feeling of being unable to breathe—_ came to him; and thus, when he realizes that his parents are there—and watching him with sharp eyes, obviously also fishing for information on what is happening to their youngest son—Sasuke only mumbles to Itachi's shirt.

"Bad dream, Aniki. Bad things."

Itachi frowns, his hand running through Sasuke's hair in order to calm the child down.

"Bad things? …What did you see, Sasuke?"

"…."

"…Sasuke?"

"Red water," Sasuke says, because a normal three year old isn't supposed to know of blood, of _death_. Nevermind that he's not _normal,_ with his new set of memories and all; but his parents don't know that. "So many red water," Fugaku bites back an almost automatic response of _'you mean so much red water'_ , for he, his wife and his son realize what exactly Sasuke meant by _red water_.

"I-It's so scary, Aniki," Sasuke's voice trembles, not because of deception but true fear—because he, or his past life in that matter, had _drowned_ for real, and the prospect of water—nevermind if it's _red_ , it's still water—terrifies him so badly. "It won't happen, right? Right?"

Itachi is silent, wide eyes staring down at Sasuke's teary, pleading ones before his resolve seems to firm, and he says as much to his brother: "No, Sasuke. You're fine, everyone's fine. I'm going to protect you."

"…Really?"

"Yeah, really."

"Pinky promise!" The child offers his pinky, making Mikoto stifles a smile, albeit how strained it is, and Fugaku to relax—seeing as his eldest son has done damage control—but still, his eyes are sharp, watching them, watching _him_.

Itachi smiles, a bit sad and maybe a bit haunted—for he saw death already, and when he figures that Sasuke saw something akin to death as well, it suddenly doesn't sit well for him—but offers his own pinky as well anyway.

"Pinky promise."

Sasuke smiles toothily in response.

.

They think after Sasuke wakes up, he'll be okay.

He doesn't.

Sasuke experiences so many nightmares, he wakes up screaming loudly until his throat gives up, to the point where Fugaku has to install silencing seals all over the room so the patrolling Uchiha don't come barging into the room anymore. When Itachi settles into the room, it gets better, but still sometimes it comes.

Sasuke is wary of his mother, seemingly to see something else, something absolutely _terrifying_ before he realizes that, _oh, I'm staring at mother_. Even so, Mikoto and Fugaku find it worrying that he's started to distance herself from Mikoto for some unknown reason, more so when Mikoto realizes that Sasuke is _scared_ of her. Scared, wary—

And _hate_.

It always disappears when Sasuke realizes, belatedly, that he's staring at Mikoto, and he always apologizes and smiles at her happily afterwards, even sometimes does so much as to hug her to reassure her that _nah_ , _that stare of doom is not for you, kaa-chan_.

And yet—

He always flinches when someone says the word ' _mother_ ', mouth twisting into an almost snarl on that cute face of his.

But when people ask if there is something wrong with Mikoto, Sasuke always looks confused.

For Sasuke, Mikoto is awesome, he says at much.

But 'mother' is Mikoto so why does Sasuke seem to separate the term 'mother' and 'Mikoto' with each other?

Why is he acting this way?

It happens again and again and again and again—

Mikoto is terrified for her son.

What exactly does he _see_ , before he sees Mikoto?

What happened to her son?

.

It becomes confusing when Itachi notices Sasuke seems to avoid taking a shower for too long. And isn't that strange, because Itachi can remember Sasuke taking comfort and so much fun in the bathtub where he can play with rubber duckies and other toys.

He used to always drag the older boy to play with him in the bathroom, to bathe him, and yet, Sasuke never asks him that anymore.

He goes to the bathroom in silence and walks out like his ass is on fire.

Or, at least, that's what Shisui said when he saw Sasuke one evening, after another spar he had with Itachi.

Itachi had frowned—pouted, actually, his eight year old face can't seem to do the Uchiha Stare of Doom just yet—at Shisui back then, but he guesses he can see the truth now. Sasuke _does_ go out of the bathroom fairly quickly. He's curious, and borderline concerned, and so he decides to approach the boy.

When Itachi asks if Sasuke will like to play with him again in the bathtub, Sasuke freezes.

With a smile that doesn't reach his eyes, Sasuke says no.

.

If it was confusing, it goes downhill pretty fast when the shower breaks a week later, having fallen to the floor in a loud crash in an accident that included Fugaku, Mikoto and the phrase _'bathing together'_ (they didn't want to explain to Sasuke rather vehemently as to how the shower could possibly _break_ , choosing to simply stare and tilt their heads in that infuriating Uchiha Head Tilt and fake innocent faces), thus forcing the family members to only use the bathtub.

It becomes alarming when Mikoto realizes Sasuke doesn't bathe.

He simply washes his face, his hands and his legs and declares it's done.

Obviously, being a good mother, Mikoto doesn't allow it to happen. When you do missions out of the village, you may not be able to bathe regularly, therefore bathing at home is like a luxury and is one thing that must be appreciated at all times. And Sasuke is her baby, like hell she's going to allow him to forgo bathing altogether. An Uchiha is clean and proper when they're not on missions or spars, and Uchiha Sasuke must be clean when the day ends.

If Shisui sprouts another joke on how Sasuke is on his rebellious dirty boy days, Mikoto is going to set him on fire.

With resolve firmly set in her, she sets out to properly scold Sasuke and bathe him if she must.

.

"No!"

"Sasuke, you have to take a bath, _now_."

"No! You can't make me!"

Mikoto frowns, her hands on her hips as she stares down at her son, Fugaku and Itachi watching her force the youngest member of the household to take a bath.

"I'm your mother, and you will do as I say, young man!"

"I SAID _NO,_ WOMAN _!"_

A scandalized gasp leaves Mikoto's lips, and Fugaku's lips pull down in a tight frown. The Uchiha Clan Head doesn't like blatant disrespect, and that is what Sasuke is doing right now, to his own _mother._ And for what? His refusal to take a bath, apparently.

What Fugaku feels at that moment is anger and disappointment at his youngest son, and the need to correct his ways—for a child should never be so disrespectful to his mother, especially when she means well—as well as discipline him surge forward as he scoops the angry shirtless boy to his arms, ignoring the yelp and promptly dumps him into the bathtub.

He doesn't know what to expect.

Maybe to just have Sasuke throw a childish temper tantrum.

Not for him to flail in the bathtub and looks absolutely _horrified_.

Even years later when Uchiha Itachi is old and so tired of the world, he will never be able to forget that moment when his brother screams, when he seems to be unable to think straight in the water as he flails around and gulps down so much water and he cries out—

"Aniki!"

Itachi is quick to take him out of the water.

.

" _He wants to kill me too_ ," Sasuke whispers over and over and over as he clings to his brother, his mind telling him that his father is trying to kill him just like _her_ while trying to deny that altogether for his father is not _her_ , his father is not _her_ so why did he leave Sasuke in the water? Why, why, why, why, _why—_

Behind him, Fugaku stares at the boy, his jaw slack and expression contorting in pain. Itachi thinks he understands: his father hadn't known, and wouldn't have done such thing to Sasuke if he knew how badly Sasuke would take it. His father loves Sasuke, and to see Sasuke like this—

It has got to hurt.

Itachi hugs his brother tighter, frown pulling on his lips as he notices the boy absolute refusal to look at his father… his obviously guilt ridden father.

It'll be better soon, he hopes.

Please make it better soon, he prays.

In the back of his mind, he thinks on how Sasuke said the word _'too'_.

.

It is to be expected, when a few hours after that incident, Uchiha Fugaku proceeds to barge into the Nara Compound where the Ino-Shika-Cho trio is meeting up in, and Inoichi is floored when he _demands_ the Yamanaka to evaluate his youngest son's state of mind.

"Fugaku-sama, with all due respect, your son is only three."

"Exactly."

"There isn't supposed to be anything wrong with him…?" This isn't war times, and no incidents have happened, as far as they know. The one who got into a traumatic incident is Uchiha Itachi, not Uchiha Sasuke. If Fugaku wants a mental check up, shouldn't it be for Itachi?

"If there isn't anything wrong," Fugaku mutters out, somehow able to sound defeated and haggard while still looking as regal as ever, "I wouldn't have asked you for this favor."

The Ino-Shika-Cho trio looks appropriately concerned.

.

When Inoichi comes to the Compound, Sasuke is asleep, and Mikoto is against waking him up so soon, after Sasuke's bout of hysterics.

"Hysterics? What happened?"

"He refused to bathe. Fugaku put him inside the bathtub and he just started screaming," Mikoto lets out a shuddering breath, her hand on top of the sleeping boy's head, caressing his face lovingly.

Inoichi's eyebrows furrow. That… isn't a good sign. Now he knows why Fugaku dragged him here.

"If that is the case, I can only do a surface scan."

"That is better than none."

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Blood.

 _Blood._

 _Uchiwa._

 _The Uchiha Clan symbol._

 _Uchiha Clan—dead, dead, dead, dead, dead deAD DEAD DEAD_

 _So much death—so much blood it's too much it's too much_

 _Too much dea—_

 _Too much—_

 _Too much—?_

 _Too much—water_

 _Too much water_

 _Water—_

 _Too much—_

 _I can't breathe I can't breathe I_ c A _ **N**_ T **B** _RE_ _ **A**_ _ **T**_ _ **H**_ E

Mother

 _Mother_

 _ **Mother**_

Why, mother?

Help me

Help me

 __ _ **m e**_

Why did you leave?

 _W_ **h** _y_ _d_ _I_ _ **d y**_ _o u_ _ **l**_ _ **e**_ a v **e?**

 _WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME TO DIE YOU COWARD YOU POOR EXCUSE OF A MOTHER HOW CAN YOU DO THIS TO ME_

 _I HATE YOU_

 _I HATE YOU_

 _ **I HATE YOU**_

 _ **I HATE YOU SO MUCH I HOPE YOU DIE**_

.

.

.

.

.

 _I don't want to die_

 _Help me_

 _Mommy_

.

.

.

.

.

Yamanaka Inoichi pulls out of the sleeping young boy's mind, confused and horrified.

What is it that made him have those kinds of feelings inside of his mind?

The Uchiha Clan is not dead. And he never heard of Uchiha Sasuke drowning. Even if the Clan tries to make it unknown, whispers will reach the entirety of Konoha anyways, with the shinobi being so prone to gossips.

So, what exactly…?

With a shuddering breath—because a child like Sasuke shouldn't have had these kinds of things in his mind in the first place. He's the same age as Ino, and the thought of his little princess violated in such a way similar to how it broke this young boy's mind, well, Inoichi suddenly understands why Fugaku looks so tired and, dare he say, worried—he leans to his chair and sighs.

"Well?" Fugaku inquires, impatient, a foreboding thought looming in his mind as he sees how haggard Inoichi looks like.

"I'm afraid…" Inoichi starts, "I'm afraid someone messed with Sasuke-kun's mind, Fugaku-sama."

Fugaku blanches. Beside him, Mikoto and Itachi have their own share of horrified looks.

"Explain," the Clan Head demands, and Inoichi elaborates.

"It's… probably because of a genjutsu. A really, really strong and specific genjutsu. A child's mind is unable to really fight against a strong genjutsu, and the thing he saw in that genjutsu seems to be… sticking in his memories. It engraved itself into Sasuke-kun's memory, and because of it, Sasuke-kun's thoughts often clash with each other. On one hand, he wants to believe the genjutsu, one that he thinks as his memories, on another hand he denies such thing vehemently based on the real memories he has of his family."

"What genjutsu did he see? Were you able to get that much?"

"Not much, but I think I got enough."

"Tell me."

Inoichi hesitates, "He saw the Uchiha Clan, massacred."

Itachi's eyes widen. His whole family and clan, _dead_? Sasuke saw that? He remembers Sasuke describing blood, but for the whole Uchiha Clan to be dead—

Itachi suddenly feels cold all over.

Inoichi is not done, however, and Itachi feels horrible enough as it is. What exactly happened to his brother?

"And he was drowning, I think. He kept on repeating on how there was too much water and that he couldn't breathe and—" Inoichi gaze lands on Mikoto, the Yamanaka frowning sadly. "He seems to be under the impression that his mother drowned him."

Mikoto's jaw drops ever so slightly, stepping backward in her shock. The blond shakes his head, "I'm very sorry. Sasuke-kun kept on mentioning on how his mother left him to die in the water, and with that knowledge on how his 'mother' apparently drowned him: he seems to be holding some kind of hatred for his mother." Through all that, Fugaku notices on how Inoichi refrains himself from saying Mikoto's name, for obviously this is bullshit, Mikoto will never hurt Sasuke, much less _drown him_ —

He's getting more and more agitated by the minute.

This genjutsu—it fucks with his son. His _son_. It's simply unforgiveable. Nobody messes with his family, nobody messes with his clan! First the suspicions on his clan, and now _this_?

Fugaku is rightfully angry.

"But," Inoichi continues, "I believe there are still some parts of him that loves his mother. He's just… scared, disappointed… angry. Near the end, he… asked for help, and he said ' _mommy_ '. Before that, it was always 'mother'."

The blond man smiles a little, "I'm going to give you some heads up on how you should handle this. It's good enough that Sasuke-kun has enough sense to doubt those genjutsu-based memories, he'd come around."

Fugaku relaxes.

"Please."

.

When Inoichi leaves, Fugaku kneels in front of Itachi, and asks, his voice grave.

"Itachi, that night, was your sharingan on?"

"…W-What?"

"Your sharingan. Was it on?"

"Fugaku!" Mikoto scolds, her voice shrill. "You can't possibly be thinking that _Itachi_ put Sasuke under that genjutsu!"

"W-What? I wouldn't—Tou-san, I would never—"

"We both know that a newly acquired sharingan can be unstable, Mikoto," Fugaku grits his teeth, even when he doesn't want to believe it either, doesn't want to even think that Itachi is the cause of all of these. But there were no other people nearby that night; that much he knows of. Only Sasuke and Itachi. And Itachi has the _sharingan_ that can create formidable genjutsu _._

"Itachi saw enough death he could've imagined the whole thing and many other death scenarios when he looked at Sasuke in the eyes. With his sharingan."

Itachi freezes, because isn't that exactly what he was doing?

"I—" he croaks out, "I did this… to Sasuke?..."

"Your sharingan was probably unstable, Itachi," his mother is quick to reassure him, kneeling down to hold Itachi's trembling hand, "you didn't mean it to happen. You wouldn't do it voluntarily. I know you won't."

"I… I… I didn't—I didn't know—I didn't want—"

"Itachi," Fugaku calls. "None of us want this to happen again."

.

.

"You're going to train with the sharingan, harder than before, to prevent this from happening ever again."

.

.

"… _.Yes, father."_

.

.

"—Not good control with the Sharingan, I heard—"

"—Put genjutsu on his little brother the very moment he obtained it—"

"—poor kid. That genjutsu is full of carnage, I heard that it's—"

"—Well isn't that great? He can put the enemies down with that terrifying genjutsu and he can—"

"—it's a pity that his first sharingan-based genjutsu is used on his little brother—"

.

.

"At least he's not against using the sharingan anymore. It'd be a pity if he's against using the sharingan after all that happened."

.

.

"So talented, a huge gain for the clan."

.

.

Sasuke figures out the whole predicament in a week, because even the Uchiha Clan members like to gossip, and _well…_

He feels bad that people seem to think Itachi is the one who put those memories inside of him—in which he thinks that, maybe, Itachi _does_ cast something on him without him knowing; and instead of a genjutsu, it's something that triggered his memories to come back.

But well, he can't possibly tell that to anyone, can he?

So he silently apologizes to his brother, and lets people think that it's Itachi's fault.

At least Itachi's training for the future where he takes the blame for everything else. (He doesn't really think much of the massacre, he doesn't care enough for the massacre, but well, if it comes down to it, he hopes he can save his parents or Shisui, because he used to like Shisui when he was that person who died by drowning. As for the rest of them, well, he doesn't know them, so what the hell).

You take a blame for something you didn't do, and it hurts, but when you take the next, it won't hurt as much, you know?

Or, well, maybe Sasuke's logic is flawed.

Whatever.

At least he still loves his brother.

Just like Severus Snape says, _Always._

 _._

 **In case you haven't realized, Sasuke is a nut case. Well, not as much as Shippuden!Sasuke but you get the point. For those who've read Erasing Impossibility and liked Rin for how Rin is, I gotta warn you. This Sasuke is** _ **not**_ **Rin's type of person. He's not going to be kind and forgiving and the good friend everyone loves. Sasuke is messed up, and considering how this is a** _ **semi**_ **SI, he's still going to be messed up. His thoughts are a mess enough as it is. I think he's going to be even worse sometime in the future.**

 **To what extent, though, we'll figure it out along the ride sometime later.**

 **Marshmallows for your thoughts?**


	3. I laugh (at the irony)

**RIG=VEDA 3**

 **I received some more info about the original Rigveda (or is it Rig Veda?) from some of the reviewers and I'm silently taking enjoyment from it. I love learning new things, especially about things like stories in religions, or myths or anything that sounds a bit mystical really. And nah, I do not know the details about the original Rigveda since one, I'm not a Hindu, and two, I just did a light reading on what Rig Veda is. Precaution, in case I kind of made someone angry or offended by using that as a title (even if I didn't even know it existed until someone mentioned it to me…), you know?**

 **But yes! I'm aware about Indra (not about Ashura tho so** _ **woooow**_ **) and hAHAHAHA should I use the symbolism here? In this fic? We'll see :')**

 **Warnings:** this chapter is diabetes, it doesn't contain as much messed up!sasuke because I find it necessary not to include too much drama. Besides, this story's genre is family and friendship lol. expect darker things next chapter, okay? For now, enjoy the sugar.

.

"Sasuke," his father says to him one day, and it takes Sasuke's every strength not to flinch. Still he thinks he can't hide it as well as he wants, for Fugaku looks crestfallen for a second before he's back to wearing the typical Uchiha stoic expression. Still, eyes are windows to the heart, and with Sasuke being his youngest son, he sees no qualms in wearing full blown poker face, and thus his eyes convey enough emotions for his child.

Not that he thinks his child can comprehend those emotions, but it's the thought that counts.

His hand reaches to pat Sasuke on the head, and Fugaku will admit to Mikoto later on that his lips twitch upward when Sasuke simply looks confused, not scared.

Not scared of him.

He's never been so glad.

"I will never kill you."

A strong word, perhaps normal children will not be able to comprehend, but he's heard Sasuke's fearful mutters before, and so he says it as it is.

"I will never make a decision that I know will harm you directly."

Sasuke stares at him for a long moment, and all is silent.

Tiny hands reach up to his hand and move it away from his head, then Sasuke speaks.

"Really?" He says, something akin to childish wonder and disbelief lacing his voice. "But Father, you're the clan head!"

Fugaku almost frowns. What is he talking about?

"Don't you and the Elders send Uchiha children to die in the war, Father?"

 _What_ —

"Won't you push the children to their limits just for clan popularity?"

 _What is he—_

"I heard the Elders don't care about Uchiha children's wellbeing! Well, mentally! I think!"

"Sasuke, what are you—"

"They get sent on so many missions, won't they feel tired and sad?"

" _Sasuke_ —"

"Isn't that the same as sending them to suffer and die, father?"

"Who said that to you, Sasuke?! That is not true; the Clan protects its members! We will never do that."

"But father," Sasuke's wide eyes are settled on him, his lips quivering, "isn't that what you're doing to Aniki right now?"

Fugaku sucks in a sharp breath.

"That… is not true. Your brother's sharingan is unstable. He needs the training. We are doing what is best for him."

"But that's what they always say."

"Sasuke," Fugaku frowns, looking stern, "we are not pushing Itachi around. He agreed, and there's that. Now, who told you all of that?"

"Mm." Sasuke hums, non committal.

"Sasuke."

"Mmmm."

" _Sasuke_."

"Dunno," he shrugs, then, and Fugaku's eyebrows furrow.

"What?"

"I don't know their name."

"You don't know….?"

"Nope!"

"…Then, do not listen to them. It is unwise to listen to strangers."

Sasuke blinks. Once, twice, before he grins to himself, as if finding a private joke that only he knows of.

"I feel like Eyeliner, now."

"…Who?"

Sasuke simply shrugs.

.

.

.

Sasuke forgets the name of The One Who Drowned, their identity and many other facts about them.

All he can remember are of that show called _Naruto_ (and even then his memories of it are blurry and he can't remember names and events correctly. Like, does Eyeliner abduction happen right after Naruto gets into the village, or does it happen months or weeks afterwards? Who dies first, the Loud Scythe Guy or the Green Eyed Stitches? How does Smoker die, again? Bloodloss? Shock? Penetrated chest? He knows there is some war… but there had been three great wars before and he could very well be having info about those three wars, not a new one) and the hazy memories of Back Then, when he was The One Who Drowned.

It angers him, sometimes, that all he can remember clearly is That Woman's face, her freckles and braids, her expressions and body shapes, her favorite clothes and foods and Sasuke _hates_ it, he hates hates hates hates hates hates and _hates_ because why must he remembers HER? He can't very well use these… silly, unimportant information about her! He can't _kill_ her either, so what the hell.

He wants to know about himself, Back Then. Before he became The One Who Drowned. When he was still just 'Them'.

Was he a boy? A girl? A nonbinary? Transgender, maybe? Who the heck knows. He himself doesn't.

And so he refers to that old self as something else entirely, our of pure amusement and the need to not confuse himself by saying 'them' or 'me Back Then' over and over again. Because he may be Them once, but now he's Sasuke.

He recognizes himself… as Sasuke.

He thinks maybe he can call them as They-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named or You-Know-Who, too, actually. And after the massacre, he can be The Boy Who Lived.

Sasuke smirks. _As if_.

And then it gets too long for him to say.

He wonders for a split second as to how the heck the Wizarding Community settles with long name callings such as that.

Dobe is much more shorter, obviously.

And well.

Sasuke likes irony.

And thus, the name Umi is born.

For he was drowned by the sea, for he was brought here by the sea, for he became Uchiha Sasuke thanks to the sea.

.

.

.

He hates sea, though, so there's that.

 _Fuck it,_ that's why. As if he can like something that killed him the first time around.

Bleh.

.

.

.

 _._

Uchiha Sasuke stares at Uchiha Shisui.

Uchiha Shisui stares at Uchiha Sasuke.

Uchiha Itachi stares at Uchiha Sasuke, gauging his reaction.

Uchiha Fugaku stares at Uchiha Shisui, daring him with his dark gaze to upset his youngest son.

.

Clearing his throat, Fugaku says, "Sasuke, meet your tutor." He gestures toward Shisui who has yet to cease his staring contest with Sasuke. "He's going to help you with your… fears, and also train you in anything you need to be a proper Uchiha ninja."

Itachi glances at Fugaku at the word 'fears', frowns a bit before he settles with watching Sasuke's reaction again. Sasuke is… eerily silent, his dark eyes watching wide eyed at Shisui—who is still yet to relent from the staring contest, does he think this is a game? Itachi thinks Shisui should be let know that Sasuke never does this before, so something must be wrong with Shisui's presence in Sasuke's mind or something—and his body unmoving.

Finally, Shisui grins, and does a flourish bow toward the youngest boy in the training ground.

"Hello, Sasuke- _chan_! I'm going to be taking care of you from now on, so you have to endure it, okay?"

A pause.

A rather long pause. Sasuke is still staring, and _does he even blink_? Fugaku twitches, wondering if Sasuke will refuse. If Sasuke asks for training from Itachi instead, well, it's normal, he thinks, but Itachi is not well-trained just yet, and he can't possibly risk his eldest son losing control of his sharingan again. He is not prepared for another breakdown from Sasuke. Just once is enough. And it's bad enough already.

…And then…

And then, well, Sasuke opens his mouth.

Fugaku will never admit that he winces when he hears what his son has to say.

"Oh! Since you'll die by drowning, right!"

.

While Itachi's gaze snaps to Sasuke and stays put, Fugaku's instead strays from Sasuke's blank look to Shisui's wide eyed one, the latter opening and closing his mouth akin to a fish, very much blatantly shocked from the words that Sasuke let out.

" _What?_ " Shisui's question comes out harsher than he probably initially thought, for he winces and glances worriedly at the still spectating Fugaku. But then he looks back at Sasuke, who shrugs.

Fugaku almost wants to slap his hand on Sasuke's mouth when the next onslaught of words come forth.

"You're going to die, by drowning, while smiling, with your eyes taken out of your sockets. Nobody is going to find your corpse," Sasuke seems to be simply letting out facts, as if he's listing a shopping list, and Fugaku almost wants to either hide or faint. Eyes stolen… What is his son insinuating?! Shock, disbelief, anger, and the sheer _what the fuck is this?_ Are written on the future Shunshin master's face, and Fugaku can say he understands.

Then a smile comes, pretty sardonic but a smile nevertheless, and Sasuke keeps on speaking and as Fugaku watches it unfold all he can thinks is _oh god stop speaking son, stop speaking_.

Sasuke doesn't stop speaking.

"I guess they predicted your death when they named you, right!"

.

.

.

.

.

Shisui looks at Fugaku, and with a cheerful smile, points at the smiling Sasuke and says.

"Hahaha! _I don't like this kid_ , Fugaku-sama."

Fugaku winces. Again.

Meanwhile Itachi almost blanches at Shisui's words. Oh no, his father can't possibly let Shisui teach Sasuke! Shisui says he _doesn't_ like Sasuke, and okay, it may be Sasuke's fault, with all those that he said,but Sasuke's traumatized, and if Shisui doesn't like Sasuke, wouldn't that mean he's going to be absolutely ruthless in trying to kick that trauma out of Sasuke's system?

He can't afford anybody hurting Sasuke.

He done that already, even if it's accidental.

He still done it, and he hasn't forgiven himself for it.

 _No more_ , he thinks. _No more hurting Sasuke._

"That's okay!" Sasuke chirps, titling his head a little bit similar to a cat, and God, does he find Shisui's shock and frustration over his words _amusing_? "I still like you a lot, Stagnant Water-san."

….

Shisui grins, and it's absolutely menacing.

"That's it, brat," he says, unrepentant even when he knows Fugaku is there watching him like a hawk. He cracks his knuckles, and _cackles_ when Sasuke finally sports a worried-for-his-life look.

 _Good,_ Shisui thinks, _he better be._

"Run, Sasuke-chan," he chirps, "I'm gonna Suiton you away."

Sasuke appropriately shrieks like the young kid he is and runs away just as Shisui starts making handsigns to start a water jutsu.

.

Itachi stares at Fugaku like This is The Worst Decision You've Ever Made.

As Fugaku listens to the sound of rushing water, noting that Shisui deliberately aims so his jutsu misses Sasuke (that boy really is too soft hearted for his own good), he silently agrees.

.

.

In his defense, Sasuke didn't remember how Shisui looked like before his father introduced Shisui to him.

And information just flooded—ugh, how he hates that word—itself into his brain and he just… blurted it out.

Kids have no tact in real life anyway, so Sasuke pushes the tiny weeny itty bit of guilt and shrugs to himself.

Umi liked Shisui.

He'll like Shisui better if he just stops those Suiton jutsu.

 _Right now._

And the Umi part of him grumbles,

 _Who the fuck designed therapies in this world?_

.

.

"Dip your feet to the water bowl."

"Why would I dip my feet to the water bowl?"

"Because I told you to, you brat."

"But I don't wanna."

"Do it, Sasuke-chan."

"I don't wanna."

"Just dip your feet, easy and nice!"

"Aniki, I want ice cream. Can I get ice cream?"

Shisui dumps water on Sasuke's feet.

"Aah, it's cold!"

Itachi sighs.

.

"Aniki, it's cold, I don't want ice cream now. Can I get ramen instead?"

"Of course, Sasuke."

"I love you, Aniki."

Itachi smiles, perhaps a bit pained. "I love you too, Sasuke."

.

.

.

.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry."

"For what? You didn't do anything wrong, Aniki."

"I hurt you. _I'm sorry."_

"Mm-hmm. I love you, Aniki."

.

.

"…I love you too, Sasuke."

.

.

Sasuke smiles, and Itachi distantly notices that this is the most genuine he's seen Sasuke after that night.

.

.

Sasuke is not afraid of a small puddle of water. He doesn't mind if he gets trickles of water on his face, he doesn't mind when water is dumped on his feet. Or when he washes his hands, or when he takes a shower, no matter how quick he does it.

However if someone sprays him when he's unaware that he's going to get water sprayed to his face, he panics like a drowned cat. He sweats and trembles when he's near a large bank of water, even a filled bathtub.

Shisui thinks it's a problem.

After all, he won't be able to learn to water walk if he's so scared that he can't even approach large banks of water.

"You're going to take baths on bathtub now."

"The po-ssi-bi-li-ty—" Sasuke almost scowls, because he struggles with hard words, even when he has the mind set of a seventeen year old, "of me getting into the bathtub is as high as the pro-ba-bi-li-ty that you won't have your eyes stolen by a power hungry Konoha-nin."

"…."

"…."

"….That's a joke. That's a joke, right?"

Sasuke smiles.

"No."

.

"Your little brother is cute, okay, but he's a brat sometimes. Who the heck jokes about getting their sharingan stolen? Not an Uchiha, that's who!"

"Hn."

"And he keeps on calling me Stagnant Water. In Amaterasu's name, I swear I haven't seen anybody who is so scared of water capable of making jokes about water."

"Hn."

"And he says I'm gonna die by drowning! Me, Uchiha Shisui, drowning and dying? _Please_. I can swim!"

"Hn."

"Are you even listening to me, Itachi?"

"Hn."

"And I'm gonna prance around the compound wearing Maito Gai's green jumpsuit. On my hands."

"Hn. I'll make sure to take photos for my father."

"…."

.

"Okay, Sasuke-chan, I'm gonna teach you a water jutsu!"

"I'm three and a half."

"Yeah, yeah, doesn't matter, it's an easy jutsu."

Sasuke has a funny look on his face. "I'm _three and a half_."

"So?"

"…." Sasuke blinks, looks away and tugs on Itachi's hand. "Aniki, can I have cherry tomatoes?"

"Oi, don't ignore me!"

"Of course, Sasuke."

" _Oi!"_

.

"I don't know why you bother," Sasuke says one day, while he slowly pours water on his feet before moving to his hands. The water is cold, and as long as he can breathe, he doesn't mind the cooling sensation for a little while. "I'm not gonna swim. Forever."

Shisui raises his eyebrow, looking amused. "There's this unwritten rule that a ninja must be able to swim. Unless you're in Suna, then you must be able to swim in sand."

"Stupid rule, not gonna follow it."

Shisui sighs, "Sasuke-chan, it's an important skill to have. You can't be scared of the water forever."

"…I'm not scared."

"Right," he rolls his eyes, "then you can't avoid water forever."

"I'm not!"

"Large banks of water."

"…I don't wanna."

"Sasuke…"

"Umi died there and I don't wanna swim there because Umi died there so I don't wanna swim there because Umi died there."

Shisui spends the first few seconds wondering how many times he repeated those words before—

 _What._

"Wait who's Umi?" Shisui furrows his eyebrows, mind whirling to remember any Uchiha kid with the name Umi.

None. As far as he knows.

"Umi? Where's _there_? Who is Umi?"

Sasuke's answer is as infuriating as ever.

"Yes."

.

"Okay, so this…. _Umi_ died, and now you're scared of water."

"Not scared."

A roll of his eyes. "Uh-huh. Now, back to Umi. Who the heck is Umi?"

"Yes."

"….I hate you sometimes, Sasuke-chan."

"Yes."

" _Uuuuuugh_."

.

"You have to think a way so you won't be scared—" a glare from the younger boy, Shisui rolls his eyes again, "so you won't _avoid_ large banks of water ever ever ever again. I don't know, maybe so this Umi person gets closure?"

Sasuke becomes silent, contemplating.

Then, to Shisui's disappointment, he shakes his head.

"Can't."

"Can't?"

"Can't."

"Why?"

"Because," Sasuke looks down, face blank, and the next words send chills down Shisui's spine. "That means I have to kill _mother_."

 _I will—Umi will—only ever be satisfied if mother dies._

 _Painfully._

 _While she's begging for her life._

 _Apologizing for abandoning me._

 _Begging for me to help her._

 _Apologizing for being a coward._

Sasuke grins maniacally at that thought, unaware of an alarmed fellow Uchiha watching him.

 _Yes,_ Sasuke thinks.

 _I'd like that._

 _._

.

 **NO UMI IS NOT INNER. I REPEAT, UMI IS NOT INNER. Umi is Sasuke's past life memories, Sasuke can't remember who he was exactly so he called himself Umi. Umi will NOT converse with Sasuke through a supernatural mental link because Umi is Sasuke as much as Sasuke is Umi. If he refers to Umi, he's talking about HIMSELF. But of course people will think Umi and Sasuke are two different people. BUT THEY'RE NOT. Get it?**

 **Anyway, since Sasuke is a little kid I think he needs to still have his child-like innocence, yknow, even if some of them are fake, haha. (Can you make guesses on which ones are fake in this chapter?)**

 **And we can't have this fic filled with too much drama, can we? We need some light-hearted things after all.**

 **Anyway, because I absolutely hate writing childhood stories (I breezed past it during EI, and even then Rin is still 8-9 in the current moment because** _ **PLOT POINTS**_ **) I'm going to do MAJOR SUPER TIME SKIP in the next chapter.**

 **Like, super time skip. Blasted through time with Kamehameha. Only important things will be shown and I think it'll only be snippets, yknow.**

 **Oh well. Thank you for reading this chapter, I love you all, please review!**

 **(PS: I have decided to update my Bio once a month to tell you on my progress, so you can know how far I am in the chapters!)**


	4. It isn't you (it's me)

**RIG VEDA 4**

 **It has come to my attention that, well, most of you like this story mostly because of how unhinged Sasuke is. And I'm laughing because this story is supposed to be filled with warmth and cuddles and the fuzzies! Because look at the genres: _friendship_ and _family._ But yeah, Sasuke is a bit... strange. Heh. But mostly I think it's in character... at some extent?**

 **Since, in my opinion the entirety of Shippuden is mostly filled with: random mentions of 'Itachi', 'Itachi', 'Itachi' and 'Itachi'. Then, " _what the_ _actual_ _fuck, Sasuke"_ and Kakashi's unimpressed 'I am So Done' face. OH, and Naruto's and Sakura's shouts of 'SaSUKEHHH!' before it escalates into _'what the fuck, Obito'_ and Kakashi's Horrified Look, then ' _what the actual fuck, Madara'_ and Kakashi's I'm Very Tired Look, and then back to the original shouting match of: 'SASUKEEEEEEEEEEEE' and 'NAAARUTOOOOOOOOO', with the extra of 'Proud but Very Tired of This Shit' Look by Kakashi.**

 **Yes.**

 **That's it.**

 **I think I did a good, good job in summarizing Shippuden.**

 **Anyway, thank you for the kind reviews! This chapter is short. I mainly intend to have it until Sasuke's genin days but I'm a lazy asshole, and it ends up longer than I initially intend to but I hope you'll like it anyway. I recently got a new laptop and what is up with new laptops these days? it's so hard to figure out how to use this and that. If you see strange formatting, do blame my inability to use my new laptop.**

 **.**

 **Warnings:** bad parenting (kinda), brother complex, diabetes? I think, at least there's the sprinkles of sugar here, to accompany the salt

 **.**

 **Soundtracks used while writing this chapter in chronological order:**

 _Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Inevitabilis (Mikoto & Sasuke)_

 _Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun: This Love is Turning into a Shoujo Manga (Uchiha Boys)_

.

Perhaps it is not so smart for Sasuke to grin like a batshit insane kid in front of Shisui.

Shisui, poor concerned Shisui, immediately told this matter to Mikoto and Fugaku after Sasuke had gone off to sleep, and while Mikoto becomes anguished, Fugaku is angry.

Angry, perhaps because the genjutsu—that he believes Itachi to be the source—fucks with his son so much he even _dares_ to think about killing his own mother. He understands the pain of betrayal, and on how it'll blind one's perspective to the point of no return. A whole lot of shinobi has fallen down that slippery slope—and as a wise man will say: grudges will bring more grudges, and there is never a happy ending for that one. Such is the case with how the village is holding a grudge against the Uchiha after the Kyuubi Attack, such an unscrupulous deed, considering even the Uchiha lost so much during the attack. Fugaku and Mikoto themselves lost their best friends—their _comrades_ and Hokage in one. For them to dare blame the Uchiha Clan... it is no brainer those who are smart enough start holding a grudge against the village's leaders in return.

Even if he can see the reasoning behind such tense relationship between the village and the clan, he sincerely hopes it won't be the case for Sasuke. Sasuke is his son, no matter how tiring and unsettling the child has become since that day Itachi awakened his sharingan. He's young, and Fugaku at this point still sees his spare as the innocent, sweet, laughing little boy.

Whereas Itachi is the one who shall rise as the Clan Head, who will be _ruthless_ , who will show how great an Uchiha can be—Sasuke is the spare, who will faithfully stay by his brother's side forever. It is a silly ideal, however Fugaku truly believes that with his children's current dynamics with each other: it will be the case if everything goes smoothly.

Perhaps Mikoto doesn't truly agree with grooming her first born as a ruthless, emotionless killer, but even she understands the point of being a strong leader that everyone can look up to. She may loves Itachi very, _very_ much, but that doesn't mean she truly disagrees with everything the Uchiha elders propose.

For no matter how she is a mother, she's an Uchiha first and foremost. And if her first born shall be groomed to be what the Uchiha sees as an ideal heir—then so be it. She'll silently hold in all the pain, and she will simply make sure to smile and support her beloved genius from the sidelines. If Fugaku shall inflict pain on the boy, then she shall be his pillar and holds him up as best as she can.

It is what she can do as both a mother and a matriarch.

But, but— _Sasuke._

Sasuke is her second son—the spare. Fugaku doesn't need to groom him as harsh as he will to Itachi, the Elders won't be breathing down his neck because they _have_ Itachi to do that to, and—and Mikoto can be the mother she desperately wants to be to Sasuke.

For Mikoto, she has failed her duty as a true mother to her first son, defeated by duty and responsibility.

And Sasuke opens that gate for her, which has been screwed shut the moment the Elders saw how fast Itachi grows as a person, that allows her to dote to him and be a _mother_.

Mikoto wants to be a mother.

God, _God, Amaterasu-sama, please._

She failed one, already.

 _Don't make me fail this one too._

She wants to—

 _I've lost my son once to duty—don't make me lose another thanks to my first son's mistake._

She wants—

 _How cruel you are, to make my own son despise me._

She wants to—

 _Please let me be a mother to him._

She—

 _I want my **happiness** back._

She wants to be happy.

 _ **Give my son back.**_

.

.

Uchiha Mikoto approaches Sasuke a few days after Shisui's report, with an unreadable expression printed on her face, and with shackles on her emotions. The woman is preparing for the worst, but even she doesn't know exactly _what_ is the worst.

Sasuke has stated he'd like to kill her for the sake of _Umi_ , whoever that is.

She doesn't know what can be even worse than that very sentence.

"Sasuke," she calls out to her son, who has now taken to reading books rather than playing, who has started to study hiragana and katakana like crazy, as if desperate to know how to read and write as quickly as he can.

But that is enough wondering; Sasuke has proven to be an unsettling child— _but still my child_ , she thinks, _he will forever be my beloved child—_ it is not much of a shock that Sasuke favors studying over playing after the genjutsu.

Other things matter more than his interest toward Academics.

Like, his desire to kill his mother, for example.

Sasuke— _oh her beloved Sasuke—_ looks up from his book, a pout on his face.

Mikoto can't help it; her mouth twitches upward in a smile.

Even when he's strange, Sasuke is very cute indeed.

She sits next to the boy, and very, _very_ carefully doesn't let her expression drop when Sasuke cannot reign in his flinch.

"Hi, Kaa-chan," he greets, and Mikoto takes note on how he never actually calls her _'Kaa-chan'_ until after the genjutsu.

Before, it has always been _'Okaa-san'_.

And isn't that strange?

If he truly hates Mikoto—If he truly wishes to kill Mikoto, she thinks he isn't supposed to heighten the endearment toward Mikoto.

 _'Kaa-chan'_ Is less formal after all.

Still, both are mother.

Both means mother.

And Sasuke...

He wants to kill _mother_.

.

.

And suddenly, Mikoto can't take it anymore.

She's so tired, so stressed and she wants her son back, she wants him to smile back at her as usual and she feels bad, but, but—

She can't help but to blame Itachi for this.

For taking away her main source of _happiness_ as a mother.

 _I've wronged you,_ she thinks as she remembers the harsh training an equally frustrated Fugaku gave to Itachi, for he truly must also _blames_ Itachi for this mess, no matter how small, no matter how Fugaku values Itachi more as an heir rather than Sasuke as a spare—but he, too, must be angry at Itachi to some extent.

 _I've wronged you **but don't do this to me.**_

"Sasuke," she very nearly lets her composure drop as she gazes down at her child, and she reaches forward to touch her son's cheek.

It does drop, when Sasuke freezes.

"Sasuke, please."

 _Please understand._

Sasuke doesn't respond, his eyes focusing on the hand that rests on his left cheek. Gently, unmoving to not further scare the boy.

"Sasuke, you're my _son_."

 _I love you_.

His eyes slowly dart over to look at her, and Sasuke looks confused.

He always does, after the short moment when Sasuke doesn't recognize her for _who she really is_. After he sees her as some crazy mother who _dares_ to let her own son drown.

 _Who do you see, when you see me, before you truly see **me**?_

"A true mother," she says, somehow maintaining her voice steady and firm, and sends a jolt of chakra to keep Sasuke's focus on her when his eyes start to glaze at the mention of _'mother'—I won't let you go down that road,_ she thinks rather heatedly, _you're going to see me as who I am when I speak,_ _ **I won't let you see me as that kind of person!**_

"Won't ever, _ever_ hurt her child, much less leaving him to die."

 _I love you, can't you see that?_

"A true mother..."

 _I love you, I love you, I love you._

"Supports her child... _always_."

 _I love you, I love Itachi. I love both of you, my sons._

 _I've failed one of you, but I will always, always, always, try to be there for you both._

 _I'm an Uchiha first and foremost._

 _But I am a mother, as well._

 _._

 _._

 _I love you._

 _._

 _._

Sasuke stares at her for a long, long moment.

Surprisingly, he starts laughing.

The laughter is not one of an innocent child, and if Shisui is there, he may have dubbed it as a ' _crazy hyena laugh'_ or something. The child may be a genius like her first born, but sometimes Mikoto wants to set him on fire for his untimely jokes.

Sasuke is laughing, laughing, _laughing—_

Right until he laughs so much, it's hard for him to even breathe.

The boy gasps for air, still chuckling.

He gazes up at Mikoto, then, grinning and looking absolutely _pleased._

Mikoto frowns, confused as much as she is partly horrified.

"Thank you, Kaa-chan," he says, his hand reaching up to grab on Mikoto's bigger hand. The hold is gentle, surprisingly so, and Mikoto lets him.

" _Mother_ is not a true mother, I get it now."

… _What?_

"...What do you mean, Sasuke?"

"Mother," he says, and Mikoto distantly notices he says _'Okaa-san'_ instead of _'Kaa-chan'_ this time around. "Is not a true mother. You told me that. Thanks, Kaa-chan."

...And yet, he calls her as _Kaa-chan._ And when he calls her that, his eyes are shining with mirth and perhaps it is hopeful thinking, but Mikoto likes to believe that she sees genuine fondness and love within Sasuke's obsidian orbs.

Still. _'Kaa-chan'_ and _'Okaa-san'_ used in one sentence, as if both hold different meanings.

What in the world...?

"Sasuke," she calls out, caressing her son's cheek, feeling the happiness bubbling inside of her when _he lets her do it_ , "when you mention _'Okaa-san',_ are you talking about me...?"

Sasuke's smile falls.

He looks offended.

.

.

"Kaa-chan is Kaa-chan," he says with absolute finality like any child his age does whenever they argue and can't see how they're possibly wrong with their arguments, "Okaa-san is Okaa-san. There's always a difference."

 _But there isn't supposed to be a difference, Sasuke_ , Mikoto stops herself from saying such aloud, for Sasuke looks up at her with a brilliant smile, and reaches up to envelop her in a hug. Or, well, as much as his short limbs allow him to.

"I love you, Kaa-chan," he says, and the Umi part of him agrees because even Umi _likes_ Mikoto... to an extent, at the very least. Umi has always liked the red haired lady more, Umi also likes the bubblegum woman more, for all her harsh and violent parts aside, she's a loyal and loving person.

If there's a thing that resonances in both Umi and Sasuke, it's that they both favor _loyalty_ above all else.

And by now, he's almost able to differentiate between That Woman and his mother; because truly the reason he keeps on flinching and freezing is because he keeps on associating Mikoto's face with the word _Mother_ and it makes him feel a little bit crazy inside.

If he can start to think of Mikoto as _Kaa-chan_ rather than the formal _Okaa-san_ , and associate that word to Mikoto—he'll be able to love Mikoto thoroughly as before.

Umi may be indifferent toward Mikoto—with slight affection toward her, but even that affection is because of _Sasuke_.

Sasuke, well.

He loves Mikoto. His _Kaa-chan_. Not even sudden onslaught of memories concerning Umi can make him hate his mom.

She's bound to die soon, but that's no reason to suddenly hate her.

Though Umi doesn't care if she dies.

Sasuke _cares_ , because it's _Kaa-chan_. But well...

 _Why bother with the pain?_ If he thinks too much over her future demise, he'll go crazy for sure. Kaa-chan is just Kaa-chan. He loves Kaa-chan, yes, but with the knowledge that Kaa-chan is going to die, and how Umi's memories make him partly indifferent toward that particular detail...

He thinks he won't mind as much when Kaa-chan does die.

 _They die with their consent anyway_ , he reasons to himself, whenever he thinks of his parents' demise. _They allow Aniki to kill them._

 _...That's right._

Even if he fails to save her...

Even if she _dies..._

He'll love her always and always.

Just like how he'll keep on loving his Aniki when he finally kills his whole clan.

Forever and ever.

Sasuke smiles to himself.

 _Yes._

The Umi part of him chortles in laughter.

 _That is good enough._

.

.

.

"Mother is not me," Mikoto whispers to Fugaku at night.

"What do you mean?"

" _Mother_ ," she stresses out, "is not me. He doesn't mean me. He never means _me_. Fugaku, he sees me as _Kaa-chan_ , not _Mother_. The Mother Sasuke talks about... it's someone else entirely."

 _The one who drowned him wasn't me,_ went unsaid but understood anyway. Fugaku's eyes widen, for her truly understands now as the implication sets in.

 _The one he wants to kill is not me._

 _The one Itachi made him see wasn't me._

.

.

.

Mikoto thinks she can truly forgive Itachi.

She doesn't care if Sasuke hates on another woman and finds thrill in killing this random woman. Shinobi kills for a living, and if he fantasizes in killing this... _Mother_ , then who is she to hold him back? It may be a nice desensitizing method.

As long as her son doesn't hate her, she's content.

She's happy.

Mikoto hums as she makes a bento filled with Itachi's favorite food.

The boy deserves it, with how much stress has been piling on that boy's shoulders.

.

.

.

Itachi is a bit confused when Fugaku lowers the standards of his training, even for mere few hours. But who is he to complain? Perhaps with this, he can spend more time with his little brother... he does remember the boy expressing his absolute need to eat takoyaki, for some reason. Maybe he can bring Sasuke to town and eat takoyaki together.

Itachi smiles to himself.

Yes, that seems like a good plan indeed.

.

.

.

.

"I like you more when you use Katon," Sasuke says, kicking Shisui's calf half heartedly. "Stop using Suiton, you big bully." The elder genius laughs, scooping Sasuke in a hug and sloppy smooches—which prompts Sasuke to call out to an amused Itachi in panic and mild disgust—before he responds.

"Aw, but I love to drench you with Suiton!"

Seeing how absolutely against this idea Sasuke is, he expresses it by slobbering on Shisui's cheek _and_ biting it.

" _EEK!"_

The boy drops Sasuke to his feet, and Sasuke runs toward his brother, who, in his mind, is wondering whether he should have Sasuke brush his teeth and wash his mouth. Who knows what kind of germs are on Shisui...? He can't let Sasuke get sick, after all.

"What the heckie, Sasuke-chan?!" Shisui hollers, rubbing his wet cheek.

" _That_ is exactly how I feel when you use Suiton on me, Stagnant Water!"

"Don't call me that!"

" _Stagnant water, aho-sui, drowning boy!"_

"I can swim! Itachi, tell him I can swim!"

"It seems that Shisui can swim, Sasuke."

"It seems? So you haven't seen him swimming either, Aniki?"

"I don't think so, no."

"Suspicious," Sasuke theatrically whispers, clutching on Itachi's shirt. "Maybe he's lying."

Itachi nods sagely, lips twitching into a smile as he ignores Shisui's mock scandalized gasp. "It does seem like it, Sasuke."

" _OI!"_

 _._

 _._

 _._

"Does he drench you when you go on missions with him, Aniki?"

Itachi smiles, amused. "No, Sasuke."

"I knew it. He's a big bully."

" _Uh, hello? Do you guys realize that I'm here?"_

"Now, now, I'm sure Shisui is just concerned over your... avoidance toward water."

Sasuke huffs. "If he's concerned, he won't give me any water, period."

" _Uhhh, guys?"_

Itachi nods, "I understand your reasoning, Sasuke. But to avoid water every single time is not a good path for a ninja."

Sasuke pouts. "Can't I just leave the water part to my teammates or something?"

" _Uhhh... Guys... I'm right here... Helloooo?"_

"I don't think so, Sasuke. You have to overcome it."

"...I don't like it."

" _HELLOOOOOO?"_

"You don't have to like it. Think of it like this. If you water walk, or use proper chakra control, you can avoid yourself from getting wet, drowning or even being unable to breathe under water."

"...Okay. ….I'll try."

" _SHISUI CALLING? GUYS? HELLO? I'm happy to know Sasuke-chan will try! But uh, I'm here? Right here? Guys? Guys?"_

Itachi pokes Sasuke's forehead, smiling. The boy easily smiles back.

His hand reaches up to Itachi's own, and while holding each other's hands, they walk away from Shisui, whose jaw is dropping each second in disbelief.

The nerve...!

Dammit, Itachi always ignores him when Sasuke is nearby.

He's pretty sure Sasuke ignores Shisui _on purpose_ , if his amused look is anything to go by. And of course Itachi will play along for the sake of his brother.

Grumbling in exasperation and amusement, Shisui decides he'll launch Teppodama toward Sasuke tomorrow.

.

.

"Suiton: Teppodama!"

Sasuke's shrill shrieks are like bells to Shisui's ears.

.

.

.

"Aniki! Can I train with you?!"

Pokes. "Forgive me. Maybe later, Sasuke."

"Aww, okay..."

.

.

"No worries, Sasuke-chan! The Great Shisui is here to accompany you and your training!"

"...Ew."

"Oi, stop that exaggerated disgusted face."

"Ewwww."

"...Do you want to get wet, Sasuke-chan~?"

"Eek! _Hentai!_ "

"Wh—Where did you learn that word from?!"

.

.

"No repeating that word, okay, Sasuke-chan?"

"...What? Which one? Hentai?"

"...Please, if your father finds out you're saying that he'll think it's because of me and he will kill me! Your mother will burn me alive! And Itachi will—why are you smirking like that, Sasuke-chan? Why are—wait, where are you going? No, no, come back! Promise me you won't say it aloud near your parents! Wait, wait, Sasuke-chan! _Waiiiiit!_ "

.

.

.

"Shisui."

"Itachi? Huh? What's wro—"

" _You taught Sasuke a bad word_."

"What?! Wait! It wasn't me!"

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

" _Waaaaaiiit!"_

.

.

.

"Father, why are the police officers harassing the people?"

"We do not harass people, Sasuke. They broke the law."

"But is it necessary to use so much... um, force? They're not shinobi."

"They broke the law and they refused to follow the officers."

"But... the civilians... they seem angry."

"We are doing our duty."

"...But... They could've be nicer... And then the civilians won't be angry."

"Such thing will never work."

"You'll never know if you don't try, fath—"

" _Enough_ , Sasuke. You will understand soon enough, when you're older."

"...Okay."

.

.

.

 _You're digging your own grave... father._

 _._

 _._

 **Whoop. And thus the whole Kill Mother is resolved (kind of). And you see that Mikoto is not as perfect of a mother as some will think; and Fugaku, oh Fugaku...**

 **In the next chapter, wait patiently for the arrivals of: _TEAM SEVEN!_**

 **Thank you for reading! I hope you like this chapter. Chocolate chip cookies for your thoughts? Sushi for longer comments, maybe? Hehe.**


	5. Stay with me (I like you)

**RIG=VEDA 5: Stay with me (I like you)**

 **And here I am, updating this fic. It's been so long, I know, sorry for the late update! From here on out, the story theme will get lighter and… happier, I guess. Even though it will still have its… moments, sometimes. I am not lying when I said it the first time around that RIG=VEDA is supposed to be a light (if slightly crack-ish) fic about family and friendship. It is simply that my muses are dicks in this fic and they decide to be angsty and a little bit crazy on their own (especially Sasuke, the little shit).**

 **Of course, Sasuke will still have his moments (because this is Sasuke we are talking about, sudden past life memories or not) and it's not the Naruto world if it isn't a little bit dark, sooo.**

 **Anyway, this chapter is about the wonderful early beginnings of Team 7 Dynamics! I hope you'll like this chapter!**

 **Warnings:** fluff, so much sugar, Sasuke Being Kind(?)

* * *

School.

It isn't exactly called as a… _school_ in Konoha. Or at least, not the one intended for future generations of shinobi. School is a civilian term, and the school for young shinobi wannabes is called as the Academy here.

Still, different term or not, school is school. And while learning the aspects of becoming a ninja is very cool—Sasuke is actually quite excited, knowing he will be one step closer in becoming a shinobi just like his big brother—Sasuke remembers going to school when he was still Umi and it is safe to say that based off of some of the unpleasant memories in 'Umi Going to School,' Sasuke isn't exactly that thrilled in going to the Academy. Especially when he remembers that he's six—close to seven—years old and that means his classmates are going to be six or at least around that age and well….

He's not really looking forward to spending "quality" time—as Shisui happily put it that day after Fugaku told him he'll be attending the Academy soon—with snot-nosed, noisy, screaming, and crying brats. Future shinobi and kunoichi or not, they're still brats at this point of time—and isn't that ironic considering he _is_ kind of a brat, especially in concerns of his admittedly fun relationship with Shisui.

If he can choose between Shisui and snot-nosed brats, he'll choose the trigger-happy suiton jutsu user _any_ day.

Alas, he can't exactly do _that_ , because his father is expecting things from him—whatever _things_ they are, for all of Sasuke's love for his father aside, that man is infuriating and a bit hard to comprehend—and he cannot very well disappoint him.

After the whole Mother issues have been solved—not really, because Sasuke still wants to go to the previous universe and wring the woman's neck—he has been spending as much time with his parents as possible. Mikoto takes it in stride, smiling brightly all the while, teaching him mundane things like cooking, cleaning, some politics, the basics of spy work, and even assist him with kunai and shuriken throwing from time to time. Although Fugaku is undeniably a bit confused, he seems to be glad to be able to spend time with his younger son between his hectic schedule as both the Clan Head and the Chief of the Uchiha Police Force. There was a time when Sasuke was asking about theories of chakra natures to his father—mainly because one: he wanted to impress his father, two: because he was honestly curious and had forgotten the explanation given from The Show—that Fugaku asked him about possibly entering the Uchiha Police Force.. as its Chief.

While Itachi will lead the Clan as Clan Head, he can be the Chief for the Police Force.

It is a nice thought out plan, an equal (of some sort) position for both of them that will possibly negate any future dispute between the brothers (not that Sasuke wants to be the Clan Head. If Itachi will take the position if Sasuke dances naked in front of the Hokage, _he will do it_. That's how much Sasuke really _really_ doesn't want to be the Clan Head. Fugaku doesn't need to know about that, though. Let him have this delusion that Sasuke wishes to be in a high and mighty position, thanks), though there is a doubt in Sasuke's mind that it will ever happen.

Because they're all gonna die anyway.

For all of his knowledge, albeit a very blurry knowledge and unreliable most of the time—Sasuke isn't sure how to preach about the Uchiha Massacre.

He doesn't want it to happen but _come on,_ he's fucking six and he only recently mastered a _small_ Teppodama (his main chakra nature isn't water, give him a break).

Preventing the Uchiha Massacre? Preventing the coup? Preventing the one eyed power hungry Konoha-nin whose name escapes him, who is a closet Mangekyo Sharingan Freak?

Psh.

Perish the thought.

Even Itachi and Shisui failed, in the original timeline.

(And Shisui died.

Sasuke needs to know if that one can be prevented or not.

He _likes_ Shisui, okay? Suiton jutsu aside, that guy is cool.)

That's saying something about the expectation that a six year old Uchiha Sasuke armed with unreliable blurry knowledge of the future can actually make it happen.

He can't very well talk to his father out of the blue about it, not bluntly either, because even if children's bluntness is something normal, he's very well tightening a rope around his neck if he ever shows any explicit knowledge about the coup _and_ having a mind against it at the same time.

At best, his father and the whole Uchiha Clan will think of Sasuke as batshit insane.

Because the Uchiha are arrogant like him— _Hey, at least he acknowledges it!_ —and probably doesn't really think that they can very well die and lose if they ever try to battle against _whole_ Konoha.

Look, just imagine, the Uchiha against the Hokage, ANBU, Maito Gai, Hatake Kakashi, the whole big Shinobi Clans in Konoha and Konoha's military power… Plus the Uchiha's own two geniuses who are very loyal to Konoha.

They're _fucked_.

But of course the Uchiha doesn't see that. Of course.

(He wonders if his experiences as Umi are the factors that make him able to see these possibilities, and he thinks that maybe, without the blurry knowledge, Sasuke will be one of the dumb people who believes the coup will be successful.

That leaves a bad taste in his mouth—because the Sasuke he knows, the Sasuke from The Show, makes so many bad choices and he knows that he's prone to making those bad choices, as well. That's just how he is.)

Also, the idea of Sasuke presenting the idea that the Uchiha will perish at the hands of the village... They'll think Sasuke is either a chronic worrier, delusional or insane. And _that's_ the best case scenario.

At worst, he will be executed for treason against the Clan or worse, brainwashed with Sharingan voodoo magic and gets turned into a _traitor_.

Not that he has any real attachment with Konoha aside from the fact that Konoha is his home.

While betraying one's own home sounds stupid, it is also a fact that Konoha betrayed the Uchiha as well.

But—

Itachi and Shisui love Konoha, and because Sasuke likes both of them, he'll settle with liking this Konoha, as well.

He's not sure he can approach Itachi and Shisui about it, though… This whole massacre and coup thing, that is.

…Wait a minute.

He _can_ , right?

They're loyal, and Itachi is very likely to burn the whole Uchiha to the ground rather than letting Sasuke get hurt.

The only problem is _how_. He's not giving out that he remembers a past life and of a show called Naruto. No way in hell.

Well.

He can figure it out in time, he guesses.

Now he's letting himself to grumble freely about school—ugh, _school_ —that will start a new term tomorrow as well as the red mark on his forehead, courtesy of his beloved nii-san who let him run head first to his two fingers!

Sasuke had thought Itachi will finally teach him _something,_ because Shisui is out on a 'very important mission' at the moment. But _noooo_ , they were another hard forehead poke and an apology.

If Sasuke doesn't love Itachi very much, he would have used the suiton jutsu laced with small lightning chakra—and isn't that a surprise, at least for Shisui, when his attempt to do small-scale Teppodama (aka very small stream of water not unlike the water coming out from a tap) ended up with him zapping the Shunshin Master's fingers—and zap Itachi on his private parts. The zap is small and doesn't hurt much, but it's still a zap. On his _private parts_.

Yeah, his brother should definitely be yodeling in joy for avoiding that fate.

Still, Sasuke managed to rope Itachi into giving him a piggy back ride ("This is punishment for lying to me!" A small sigh of amusement was heard, and Itachi complied), and they also managed to talk about Fugaku's plans when they passed by the Uchiha Police Force Department.

" _Nii-san," Sasuke calls, switching from the formal 'Aniki' to a more endearing nickname. Sometimes it slips and he reverts back to the good ol' Aniki, but he's seen that Itachi somehow likes it more when he uses 'nii-san' for whatever reason unknown to Sasuke._

" _Hmm?"_

" _Father wants you to be the Clan Head, and me to be the Chief for the Police Force."_

" _Is that so?"_

" _Yeah! Father said so himself."_

" _Hmm, you don't want to be Clan Head, Sasuke?"_

 _Sasuke scrunches his nose. "No, thanks. It's too much work, I bet. You can deal with it yourself, nii-san."_

 _A chuckle. "But if you're a chief, you'll handle paperwork as well, you know?" Because of course he knows Sasuke's main reason of avoiding clan responsibilities. Of course. "Maybe even more, because chief handles village matters. Lots of meetings, too. Not only with fellow Uchiha, but other people as well."_

"… _Well then you can get both of them, nii-san." Sasuke is fairly certain Itachi is holding in a snort at that. If Shisui is here, he'll be full blown laughing by now._

" _Oh yeah? Then what will you do, if you're not Clan Head and Chief?"_

" _Well. I can just stay at home, for one. And terror Shisui for life. And collect cats. I'm sure kaa-chan won't mind."_

 _Itachi lets out a startled laugh at that._

" _Niiiii-saaaaaaaaaan," the youngest of the Uchiha brothers whines, "why are you laughing? It's a nice dream! I don't have to deal with stupid stuffs."_

" _It is, isn't it?" Itachi says, his tone almost wistful. "Very peaceful."_

 _Sasuke pauses, wondering for a moment on how he must respond to that before he bulldozes on. "Nii-san, I think the term you're looking for is_ noisy _."_

 _Itachi smirks lightly. "Ah, yes. Lots of cats, hm? Nekobaa will be proud."_

Their conversation had been interrupted by his father, who wanted to talk. Of course, that _talk_ included praises for Itachi's fast advancement within the ranks and his many accomplishments that Sasuke is proud for his brother about.

Then it went downhill when Fugaku said he wanted to go along with Itachi's tomorrow's special mission.

First of all, Sasuke—with all of his experiences as Umi which mean basic emotions and knowledge aboutschool life—doesn't mind if Fugaku doesn't come to his first day in Academy. It's just first day. Small thing.

He's Clan Head, he's busy, and he can accompany Itachi all he wants. Of course, there's this small disappointment in him, because he's still the six-bordering-to-seven year old boy who wants to have acknowledgement from his father. But Fugaku acknowledges him too, he reasons—with his worry that one time Sasuke gained knowledge as Umi, that time he (falsely) punished Itachi for Sasuke, that time he took the effort to ask Shisui to help Sasuke, and also that Chief of Police Force comment he had made before. They were all for Sasuke, and Sasuke acknowledged all that. He _knows_ he is acknowledged—and he knows that he is _loved_.

Second, it doesn't have to be Fugaku who accompanies him to the Academy. Sasuke is sure his mother won't mind, even ecstatic, perhaps, so Sasuke already has a stand in for the 'required family member' rule.

That is why, when Itachi smiled at him, seemingly encouraging him to talk to his father about tomorrow's first day in Academy, Sasuke smiled back—

And said the exact opposite of what Itachi silently encouraged him to.

" _I wish you luck for tomorrow's mission, father."_

Fugaku had glanced at Sasuke for the first time since the talk started—

And gave him a small smile.

Sasuke almost could taste Itachi's surprise.

When the talk was done with, Itachi looked at him, and asked if it was alright, if he was alright.

It made him smile.

" _I'm fine, nii-san,"_ he had waved Itachi's concerns away, _"I can still go there with kaa-chan. Goodluck for tomorrow's mission, nii-san! Can I see your ANBU mask when you get it?"_

"If _, would be the right word, Sasuke."_ But Itachi smiled at the encouragement nevertheless, and gave him another forehead poke before walking away.

He likes to think that he has avoided a potential fight between his brother and father, that time.

So all is well.

Now… back to his current problem.

School.

 _Tomorrow_.

"Ugh," Sasuke grumbles, stuffing an empty notebook and few writing utensils into his bag. He can only hope first day in this world is similar to how it had been in Umi's, with only a small ceremony and introductions. It certainly will be a very nice first day.

Holding back a sigh, Sasuke flops to his bed.

He hopes he can get a few friends, at least.

Just… not fangirls.

Anything but fangirls.

* * *

There are quite a lot of kids attending the Academy. He can spot some of the Rookie Nine from his position, and the others are either other clan members that are not introduced in the show or civilian born kids. The parents are lined up not too far away from the new kids, and Sasuke tries to listen attentively to the Hokage. Though it's just a speech about the Will of Fire, way of the shinobi life and all that, Sasuke has to admit that Sandaime Hokage is a charming—in a way—leader that can catch your attention when he speaks.

Also, he looks like the grandpa everybody will love, so there's that.

Aside from that, though, Sasuke doesn't pay much attention to the friendly greetings, focusing on the important bits of information that is given.

At the end of the day, he has introduced himself—there is no blond knucklehead in the class, and he wonders if they will only get into the same class upon graduation—and sees all Rookie Nine except for the aforementioned knucklehead.

He lets himself worry for a little bit, but decides to shrug it off. When he graduates and there is still not even one sight of the blond, then he will worry because _what happened to canon?_ But now he decides to let it be.

His mother greets him at the Academy gate, smiling brightly and ruffling his hair, much to her amusement and his ire. And around that time, a big—an Akimichi? Maybe not, he must not think every fat ninja are Akimichi. That's insulting—chuunin, probably a teacher, approaches them.

"Well…" The man starts, glancing down at Sasuke with a small smile, "I still remember the day when Itachi entered. As expected from siblings."

Sasuke smiles back at the man, a bit shyly because this is his actual first interaction with an adult who is _not_ an Uchiha, and Mikoto smiles, nodding.

"Thank you for taking good care of my sons, as well."

"No, no, it's nothing!" The man waves the compliment away with a boisterous laugh, "There hasn't been such a genius… Such quality student at the academy ever since… There wasn't enough need for my care!"

"Why, that compliment is too much, don't you think?" Mikoto's smile doesn't falter, her hand reaching out to touch Sasuke's shoulder in a silent support. Sasuke appreciates the sentiment; his kaa-chan is here for him.

"No, no! Nonsense! You should expect this from them, shouldn't you? Such genius! I bet your younger son will be the same—"

"I think," Mikoto cuts in, smiling pleasantly, "that every children has their own capabilities. My first son may be a genius," the Uchiha Matriarch gazes down at her youngest, her eyes soft, "but I believe Sasuke is amazing on his own way."

"Oh…" The shinobi trails off, a bit stunned.

Sasuke, uncaring of what the chuunin may think, simply smiles brightly at his mother.

It's a good day.

* * *

It takes him a week before he finally sees the main character.

It surprises him that it takes him _that_ long, and it also surprises him that he forgets the main character's name, most of all. He's not exactly great in remembering names—though with faces, it's all going smoothly—and has forgotten like 90% of his classmates' names. He only remembers the names of the people he talks semi-often with, or students like Shikamaru who get scolded at a lot by the teacher and thus gets called out a whole lot.

But even he thinks he's supposed to remember the main character's name, at the very least.

Gazing at the figure sitting on the swing, Sasuke distantly thinks the main character looks exactly like the underdog he is supposed to be.

Alone, obviously lonely, clad in a dirty white shirt too big for him…

Oh, and he's glaring.

Sasuke wonders how he can glare and look so sad at the same time.

(Sasuke wonders if that is how he will look like, after the massacre,)

Blinking in surprise, it takes him a second too late to realize the main character has noticed his gaze and is now glaring at him.

Sasuke blinks again, looks behind him to make sure that _yes_ , the main character _is_ glaring at him.

He looks back, and the blond's glare intensifies.

He points at himself, the glare gets even darker.

Blink, blink.

Well, then.

He's curious about the blond anyway, so…

With a mental shrug, he makes a bee line toward him, ignoring how the blond stiffens at his approach.

"Hey, you," Sasuke starts with his nonexistent tact, "who are you?"

It is the blond's turn to be surprised.

Though the surprise doesn't last long and the previously wide clear blue eyes turn less hostile and more wary as he blurts out.

"I-I can say the same about you, bastard!"

" _Teme!"_

" _Dobe!"_

Blinking the sudden flashback (futureflash?) away, he answers as neutrally as possible.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke, asshole."

 _ **Neutrally**_.

"Who you callin' an asshole?!"

"You." And as an afterthought, "idiot."

"WHO YOU CALLIN' AN IDIOT?!"

Sasuke sighs through his nose, already annoyed. God, he doesn't remember the dobe being this loud. He's attracting a crowd, already.

"You. Whose name I don't know. Whose name I asked the first time around." And because he's a bit of an asshole himself, he adds endearingly. "Idiot."

The dobe jumps off of his swing, pointing rudely at the Uchiha, ranting loudly about how Sasuke's a bastard and an asshole and the dobe is certainly not an idiot, thank you very much!

He blinks, and he stares at the blond some more.

…He wonders why he feels a sudden need to punch that face.

He keeps the urge to himself, though. Because there are people watching.

The blond has stopped his rants about Sasuke's stupid greeting and finally goes to introduce himself.

"My name is Uzuamki—I mean, Uzumaki— _DON'T LAUGH, BASTARD_! I'm Uzumaki Naruto! You better remember that, you get it?!"

Oh, yes. Naruto. How can he forget that? That's the Show's title, for God's sake.

"Okay, Uzuamki Naruto."

"IT'S UZUMAKI!"

"Well you said the first time arou—"

"THAT WAS A MISTAKE! A MISTAKE, I TELL YOU!"

Sasuke can't hold in the snort.

The blond is loud, he thinks.

Though, very amusing when angry.

"Well, okay," Sasuke shrugs, smirking when he notices that Naruto is still fuming, his face red. "See you around, Naruto."

And the Uchiha spare turns around, missing the stupefied look Naruto sends his way.

"…Huh?"

* * *

He meets Naruto again a few days later.

Again, he is the first to approach, taking note of the surprise written clearly on the blond's face.

In a way that Shisui will probably be proud of, his first greeting is of an endearing insult.

"Uzuamki," Sasuke nods at Naruto.

The response is instantaneous.

"IT'S UZUMAKI!"

Sasuke smirks as Naruto hollers in fury. Hey, at least he remembers his name. It's definitely better than when he smiles blankly at his classmates because he can't remember what their names are.

"What are you doing here?" He asks, finding no topic to talk about.

That catches Naruto off guard.

"H-Huh? What do you mean, ttebayo?!"

"This place is for Academy students only."

"Huh?! I'm an Academy student, teme!"

Sasuke blinks. "You are?"

"Of course I am! I got in early!"

Oooh. That explains why he's not in Sasuke's class, certainly.

Nodding, Sasuke hums lightly and turns around, his curiosity done with plus not knowing what to really say, about to wave and leave when Naruto speaks up.

"O-Oi, teme!"

Sasuke turns around, blinking.

"Hm?"

"Y-You—" The blond falters, before squaring his shoulders and speaks more confidently. "Why did you talk to me, 'ttebayo?"

Sasuke tilts his head, genuinely confused.

"Why not?"

The blond doesn't answer, looking stunned.

Shrugging, the Uchiha waves as he walks away.

"Bye, Uzuamki."

"IT'S UZUMAKI, BASTARD!"

Sasuke chuckles.

* * *

"Uzuamki, Uzuamki. Who does he think he is? My name is Uzumaki Naruto, ttebayo!"

"Butchering someone's name like that… Wait until I call him Sauske! Hah, I'll call him Sauske the next time I talk to him!"

.

.

" _Why did you talk to me, ttebayo?"_

" _Why not?"_

.

.

A small, hopeful smile blooms on his lips.

"….Bastard."

* * *

"Look at that forehead!"

Sasuke pauses on his walk home.

"Whoa, creepy! Who has forehead that big?!"

A small noise of surprise leaves his lips, not enough to alert the bullies—not like they seem to care, anyway.

"Ugly, uuuugly!"

His eyebrows furrow.

…Are those real insults?

…They seem very petty and… uncreative.

Granted, they're children, just like him but—

…Big forehead?

Really? As if someone would get hurt by tha—

Oh.

Oh. Someone's crying.

…He guesses the person is sensitive about their forehead.

"Sakura has a big foreheaaaaad! Sakura has a big foreheaddd!"

Sakura.

Just like that one time, the name brings forth a sudden input of small knowledge.

" _Forehead!"_

" _What did you say, Ino-Pig?!"_

Sasuke shakes the dizziness away. Girl rivalries, filled with insults. Huh. But at that memory, she doesn't seem to care when she's called _forehead_? So why is she crying _now_?

…

"Forehead! Forehead!"

…Hmm…

"Stop calling me that!"

…Hmmmmm…

"Oh yeah? Well, you're ugly! Ugly!"

"Uwoaaahhhh!"

"Haha, she's crying!"

….

He's going to blame Shisui's teaching for this.

With handsigns—some sloppier than the others—he builds up enough chakra for a medium sized teppodama, successfully drenching the bullies.

Some probably gets onto this Sakura, but shhh, details.

"Gyah! What is this?!"

The bullies turn around—oh look, typical all-girls bully group, and they're all from his class to boot—to glare, before stopping short at Sasuke's sight.

"S-S-Sa-Sasuke-kun! Oh my!" They stutter, making Sasuke raise his eyebrow.

They know him? …Well, of course they do.

He doesn't know who they are, though.

"Who are you?" He says truthfully, a bit amused when they look crestfallen.

One of them brightens, and introduces herself. "My name is Ami! Ami, Sasuke-kun! Surely you remember me, right?!"

"Hmm, I don't remember."

Ami looks crestfallen once again.

"A-Ah, Sasuke-kun, do you see who poured water over us? You see, we were just playing over here and suddenly—"

"It was me."

"H-Huh?"

"It was me. The one who drenched you."

"W-Why would you do that?!"

"Because…" Sasuke glances behind them, finding startled green eyes staring back at him, before he settles his gaze back to Ami and her friends.

"Because you're acting like a bitch."

"B-Bi—?"

"Huh?"

"What does that mean?"

Sasuke almost snorts. Ah yes, small children. Doesn't know a curse word when they hear one. Except for Naruto, perhaps.

And thus, he settles with the basic insult.

"You're ugly."

They freeze, staring at him wide eyed.

With a crooked grin, he continues, "your forehead is _too small_. Who has forehead that small?"

They're gaping, mouth moving but never closing at the same time. Sasuke has to suppress a snicker. This is the most fun he has in awhile. Shisui's been busy these days, he hasn't gotten any real chance to insult and throw water jokes at him. These girls will do as a replacement for today.

"W-Wha—"

"Sasuke-kun what are you—"

"You're so ugly," he repeats. "Go away."

True to kids fashion, the girls seem to be on the verge of tears and runs away, screaming _meanie_ at the Uchiha who could care less.

He's left there, to stare at green eyes, half covered by pink hair.

Oh, so Sakura's the bubblegum girl! The one who destroys mountains? Makes craters on the ground with one punch?

She looks like a beaten kitten right now, though.

He wonders what makes her so strong and fierce, as she is seen in his Umi memories.

Dammit. This is why he needs enough information about canon. His knowledge is already unreliable as it is.

"U-Um…" Sakura starts, but at his attention, she quiets down.

"…So, why were you crying?"

"T-They teased my forehead…"

"…Why were you crying?"

"Um… My forehead…?"

"Why?"

"Because it's too big!"

"No it's not."

"Y-Yes it is!"

"It's not," Sasuke huffs. "And besides, it doesn't really matter."

"It does! Y-Y-Yo-You don't understand!" The pink haired girl is close to crying now, but she makes an effort to try to glare at him.

Ah.

There's the fierce bubblegum girl he remembers.

"Well, your hairstyle _is_ very ugly," he amends, watching her flinch at his insult, though he pays no heed to it as he steps closer.

"You know if you keep on crying about it, they're going to tease you more, right?"

"H-Huh?"

"And if you keep on trying in hiding it, people will pay more attention to it."

"B-But…"

"Why don't you just show part your bangs from the middle?"

"N-No way! They will see my forehead!"

"…Foreheads are never meant to be hidden," Sasuke mutters under his breath, though he hums and swipes her bangs to the left, ignoring how she twitches at his touch.

"How about this?"

"Huh?"

"It's not parted from the middle," he explains, hands hovering near her hair in emphasis. "But it's certainly not as ugly as before."

"R-Really?"

"Well, you can just go look at the mirror and see for your self."

Standing up, Sasuke turns around. It's almost curfew, kaa-chan will be expecting him!

"H-Hey!"

The Uchiha turns back, blinking.

"Was… was it really ugly?"

"Very ugly."

"Oh."

"Yep. Bye, ugly."

"Y-You said it's not ugly anymore!"

"Bye, Not-Ugly-Anymore."

He doesn't hear her answer.

"B…. Bye…"

 _LINEBREAK_

The next morning, he finds himself under the adoring stare of Haruno Sakura, and regains a small memory.

" _Sasuke-kun! Kyaaaaaaaa!"_

…

Out of all people, he helped a fangirl?!

* * *

 **As you can guess, I get unmotivated the very moment I reached the Sakura part.**

 **I don't know what makes canon!Sakura fall in love with Sasuke, but here? It's because he helped her.**

 **Also, Ami and his goons started using makeup to seem pretty in front of the Uchiha spare.**

 **Sasuke is just very weirded out and thinks they're crazy. What kind of seven year olds wear make ups!? So Ami and friends aren't that successful in seducing him, at the moment.**

 **Previews:**

Shisui's next words make Itachi's blood run cold.

"Kill me… Itachi."

 **RIG=VEDA - Goodbye (We will meet again)**

"It's not—I mean—I—I'm just…"

My words are cut off abruptly as Orochimaru's hand lands on my head.

 **Erasing Impossibility – Bad Start**

"N-No—No, no, no— Give her back—"

The young Hatake drags his fingers on the dirt, in a feeble attempt to get her back, to take her back—

"No—Please, _please no—_ Give her back, give her ba-ack," his voice cracks, "please, please, _please_."

Orochimaru stares down at him.

Coldly.

Mockingly.

Pityingly.

 **Other Side of Impossibility – BAD END II - Orochimaru**


	6. Hello (It's Me)

**RIG=VEDA 6: Hello (It's Me)**

 **This chapter is wonderfully inspired by BTS's new song: NOT TODAY. I'm a proud ARMY, Rap Monster is my bias and I have only recently realized that Suga and Jungkook are hot and that I love Jin's laugh and J-Hope's dance moves and V's dorkiness and Jimin's smile very very much bc before I noticed them I paid too much attention on Rap Monster to bother with anyone else. Dammit** _ **.**_

 **That is all about BTS thank you.**

 **Before some people find it necessary to bash me because of my choices of pairings please note that:** _ **I STICK BY CANON PAIRINGS IN THIS STORY**_ **. That means there will be NaruHina goodness and SasuSaku literally dripping in this story, and probably NaruHinaSakuSasu, the terrifying foursome. (And yes, Sakura's hairstyle is like in The Last).**

 **Kakashi is free game. Idk, maybe I'll sic him with Iruka or Yamato or that random filler character he kissed once in the anime.**

 **Of course, romance will not happen until, like, a decade, but it's just something I feel like saying before some of you start suggesting SasuIno or something. SasuNaru may happen if the foursome happens, lmao. Besides, pairing isn't exactly the focus of this story.**

 **(and SasuSaku will actually be a healthy supportive relationship than that thing Kishimoto made up in canon. Nice, right? I have always been a fan of pre-time skip SasuSaku anyways. Shippuden SasuSaku is just…** _ **no.**_ **)**

 **FOR THOSE WHO ARE WAITING FOR AN UPDATE IN EI:**

 **I AM HAVING A MAJOR WRITER'S BLOCK IN THAT STORY AND I WILL CONTINUE** _ **AFTER**_ **MIDTERMS. SO PROBABLY MOSTLIKELY IN MAY.**

 **I am sorry and thank you for your support!**

 **Warnings:** fluff, Sasuke Tries to Be A Good Person (Again). Did I promise Shisui dying? I'm sorry but it probably will happen next chapter, because Lucky Number Seven.

 **Enjoy reading!**

It takes his new fangirl—oh how the word leaves a sour taste in his mouth—three days before she manages to gather the courage needed to talk to him again.

It gives him a few terrifying flashbacks. Umi's knowledge of the bubblegum girl and her tendency to scream and squeal are making him sweat and tremble and there's dread at the pit of his stomach and _it's so terrifying get away from me getawaygetawaygetaway—!_

But then she doesn't squeal nor scream or even does any of those random streaks of violence she seems to harbor for _anyone_ but him, as if the Sasuke he is but also not at the same time deserves some sort of a _special_ treatment he never asks for.

Haruno Sakura looks at him, her hair parted in the way he did it for her back then, her hands tangling with each other as she fidgets.

"S-Sasuke-ku—"

"I didn't give you permission to call me by my first name," Sasuke manages to blurt out, only because he doesn't want to listen to whatever fangirly things she probably has to say. What if it's a declaration of love? Sasuke will bolt and hide in a trash can if he has to.

Sakura blanches at his sudden interruption though, her face seemingly unable to choose whether it wants to be as white as sheet or as red as tomato. The girl hastily looks down then, hands twisting on her yellow sundress.

"S-Sorry, Uchiha-san—"

"Call me Sasuke," Sasuke interrupts again, lips twitching upward at the thought of pissing her off and probably down a fangirl by one. Not that he has any yet, or at least he'd like to think so, thanks, "there are still way too many Uchihas in this village. They'll get confused."

The bubblegum girl stares at him blankly, and as soon as she processes his words, she cannot help but to scowl at the Uchiha. Though considering her age, her physical looks and slightly chubby cheeks, it looks more like a pouting plum than anything.

Sasuke doesn't react much to her, simply raising his eyebrow in a silent challenge. Fortunately or unfortunately for him, Sakura remembers her shyness and looks down to the floor again, face flushing.

 _Okay_ , Sasuke sighs to himself, _this is not going anywhere_.

"What do you want?" He asks, and waits as the girl gathers her courage. It's taking too much time in Sasuke's opinion, but he's hardly about to call her out on it lest she loses all of her remaining courage altogether.

"I-I just… Wanna say thank you," she mumbles out, "Mama says I have to thank people who help me so… Thank you very much."

Sasuke blinks. "Just that?"

"I-I—" She fumbles with her words, hands twisting even further on her poor sundress, "I looked into the mirror."

He raises an eyebrow. What does that even have to do with anything?

"I look pretty," she admits, face flushing when she realizes she has just complimented herself in front of a boy, but Sasuke's eyes simply flash in understanding because she's very self conscious of herself, isn't she? Sasuke doesn't remember this particular quality in the roaring bubblegum girl in the war he doesn't remember the name of or the squealing long haired bubblegum girl, but he certainly remembers a few days ago when she was bullied and crying because of her forehead, out of all things.

Sasuke doesn't really understand what's so bad about wide foreheads, to be honest, mostly because _it's just forehead,_ and he himself exposes his forehead daily.

But she's a _girl_ , and perhaps girls are more sensitive about their appearance than most men, because he knows of the gruff Uchiha boy grumbling about his acnes and his bangs, he's seen an old man commenting offhandedly about his no-longer-handsome looks, and some others.

And, well, it's a normal thing, he guesses, to be self conscious… To an extent, that is.

But he still thinks she has it a bit too much, because she hasn't been able to look him in the eye even once.

Squinting, Sasuke pointedly doesn't respond and waits until the girl hesitantly flicks her eyes over to look at Sasuke's own dark orbs and squeaks, letting out mildly hysterical apologies to the boy.

This… Is definitely not the Bubblegum Girl from the Show.

Or at least not yet.

Still, Sasuke finally gives her some pity and asks, "So you're not picked on anymore?"

"E-Eh?"

"Those girls," he elaborates, "they're not bullying you anymore?"

"T-They… Um," she bites her bottom lip, hesitating, "they, um…"

Sasuke narrows his eyes, then, because that's a sign that it _is_ still going on, somehow. _Of course_ , he thinks, _they're not going to stop simply because I mocked them_.

Bullying is wrong, he knows, even if it's not his problem, it's still _wrong_ , but he's hardly about to be her knight in shining armor or her hero. That will make it like she cannot do anything—in which she can, if his memories of her destroying boulders are any indication—and as if he's her… destined Prince Charming or something. In which he's not, thanks. He _can_ make them run away when he's in the area, but other times? She'll have to do it herself.

To truly escape from bullies, people have to stand up against them, or so Sasuke believes.

Of course it's not going to be easy, even if Sasuke doesn't know about it explicitly because he's never been bullied before, but well…

"If they tease your forehead again," Sasuke starts, gaining her attention, "just punch them in the face."

Sakura's jaw drops.

Sasuke, seemingly not noticing or caring of her bewildered expression, nods sagely to himself and continues on, "if they corner you, kick them between their legs."

This time she starts to pale, obviously imagining the _pain_ that will come from that one action, because boys or girls, if they're kicked right there, it's going to hurt, and still Sasuke pays no heed.

"Anyway, their words don't really matter, so just ignore them," he nods to himself again, "get a friend, get a ninja mentor, get stronger, punch some people, punch some rocks, hug some slugs, win some fights, drink sake, poison some people, collect cats, whatever. And stop looking down at the ground," he says the moment he sees she's about to lower her head again, making her snap her head up to look at him, "that makes you look pathetic, and pathetic people are _annoying_. People's eyes are up here, my eyes," he points at his eyes, "are up here."

Sakura blinks at him, wide eyed and jaw open. She seems to be at loss for words, and honestly, Sasuke is done waiting for her to collect words to say.

"Chin up," he says lastly, and after inclining his head at her once, he leaves her behind.

.

.

.

.

They're messing with her again, she realizes, and it's very scary. They're very mean, and even if she's not covering her forehead like she used to before, they still mess with her and laugh at her, they point at her forehead and corners her and she's very _very_ afraid. She wants this to stop, she wants them to stop, she's had _enough_ , she doesn't want this to continue!

( _Not too far away from where she's cowering and surrounded by other girls, a blonde catches sight of her and tightens her jaw, stomping toward them_ —)

She wants them to stop, if only she can stop them, if only she can—!

" _If they tease your forehead again,"_ She remembers Sasuke-kun saying to her around a week ago, his words having repeated in her mind over and over again since that day, _"just punch them in the face."_

She's hardly able to do that, she's not going to be able to do that, but, but—But he's saved her, before, and although his words are mean ( _pathetic_ , he said, _pathetic, annoying_ ) he still saved her and gave her encouragement and advice and—and it's good, it's great, and it makes her feel as if she's not entirely alone in this Academy, that perhaps her decision to be a kunoichi is not that bad anyway, and that perhaps she can be brave like the kunoichi next door, that perhaps she can be so kind and strong and badass and _awesome_.

She wants to be strong.

She wants—

 _People's eyes are up here._

She wants to—

 _Chin up._

Haruno Sakura takes a breath, and lifts her chin up, lips pressed in a thin line.

"I look pretty!" She tells them, and although her hands are trembling, her lips are wobbling and tears threaten to pour from her eyes, she looks at them in the eyes, she _looks_ , because their eyes are up there and she has to chin up, because she cannot handle this anymore, she cannot _stand_ them anymore.

 _Chin up._ He said.

 _Chin up_. She repeats to herself.

"I look at the mirror, and I'm pretty!" She says again, and this time, there's a strange feeling in her chest, and she finds herself actually starting to believe her own words. That's right. She sees it on her own, right? Her forehead is still visible, but she's pretty, she's cute, and that's enough, right?

Right?

"Wh-What does that even have to do with anything?" One of the girls say, "your forehead is so big, it doesn't even matte—"

"I'm pretty!" She bites back, choking down the frustrated tears, "I'm pretty!" She cannot say that her forehead doesn't matter, because she's still self conscious about that, still thinks that perhaps her forehead is too big for comfort, but she's pretty, _she's pretty_ and that's a fact, that's what matters right now.

"I'm pretty and you cannot say otherwise!"

The girls are about to say something, but Sakura twitches and ends up punching Ami in the face, a knee jerk reaction in avoidance of the jeers that will surely bring her down again.

Ami flails and falls flat on her bum, while even Sakura stares in disbelief over what she's just done.

" _If they tease your forehead again,"_ Sasuke said to her, " _just punch them in the face."_

She never guesses that she'll actually follow that sort of advice.

( _She is about to help the cowering girl, when the girl she's about to help suddenly fights back, shouts back against her bullies and she feels glad, because that girl is fighting back. But then things escalate and the girl who was cowering not even a minute ago punched the other girl in the face._

 _She cannot help it._

 _Yamanaka Ino looks at the scene in front of her, from the red face one of the bullies sport, the sudden fear in another ones', and the stupefied look on the pink haired girl, then laughs so hard her stomach hurts_.)

.

.

.

That day, Sakura gains a friend: a friendly and brave Yamanaka Ino, who smiles at her and brightens her day, who tells her more advices in becoming braver, stronger, prouder of herself, who teaches her about flower languages and compliments her looks, who doesn't mind her forehead and suggests to part her bangs to show her forehead and perhaps she will do it, sometimes, but she thinks that she likes her hairstyle the way it is, and Ino doesn't mind, really, because it's good for her too, and gives Sakura a red ribbon as a hair decoration—

Sakura is… happy.

She's gained a friend.

She's not alone anymore.

She thinks she can be strong, this time around.

.

.

Ino gains a friend, and she likes her very much.

Sakura is a girl, a friend, who still smiles hesitantly and lowers her head sometimes before she seems to remember not to, whose smiles are very pretty and cute, who has _pink hair_ that is so smooth, who smiles at her and looks at her like she's the next best person in the whole world and _still_ able to (hesitantly) speak up against her when Ino gives her suggestions—

And Ino, who likes a friend more than mindless minions and goons, smiles because Sakura is a _friend_ , definitely, and that's great! She's cripplingly shy, but it's not a few confidence booster won't fix, and if Ino, who is learning to be as awesome as her dad cannot do it, then surely her dad can!

.

.

.

Sakura and Ino gain friendship within each other, after that fated day when Sakura punched Ami in the face.

At the same year, Chouji and Shikamaru get closer with each other,

Hinata and Shino sit next to each other in the class, finding comfort in each other's silence and non-judgmental exchanges,

Akamaru is no longer pissing on Kiba's head,

And Sasuke—

.

.

Sasuke wonders if it's because of village hidden propaganda against the Uchiha, or because these kids are just very jealous of his obviously (arguably) better upbringing (mainly because he's from a Clan and they're either orphans or civilians), but they never try to engage him actively in conversations, and other times, they are actively mocking or praising the apparent 'genius' of the Uchiha Clan.

Sasuke doesn't really mind. He hardly cares. He likes the solitude. The less stupidity around him, the better. And the genius talks—albeit Sasuke not thinking of himself as a genius because no matter how he wants to, he's not in the same level his big brother once was when he was Sasuke's age—makes his pride soar to the higher skies.

But solitude is different from loneliness, and sometimes, the classroom, although how packed it is, makes him feel lonely enough that he wants to just go back to the Compound and either hug his brother or terrorize Shisui. At least Shisui makes his days brighter (and wetter) than the boring classes and suffocating loneliness he sometimes feel.

" _Do you have friends?"_ His kaa-chan asked him once, and Sasuke couldn't really answer, but smiled at her anyway.

" _I have classmates_. _What's for dinner?_ "

It's not that he doesn't interact, per se. He speaks with Shikamaru sometimes but often leaves him alone so the boy can sleep. He shares some of his food—except the tomatoes—with Choji, doesn't insult Kiba _that_ much, and sits beside Hinata and Shino with ease. He keeps a safe distance away from fangirls—or possible ones, like Ino, who is already leering at him a little bit and Sakura, who now wears hairclip to keep her new hairstyle and a red ribbon tightened around her head like a headband in similar to bunny ears, who steals glances at him sometimes during class—and probably insulted a few other classmates by not remembering their names properly, but he interacts with them.

And yet that doesn't mean he feels a bond stronger or as strong as he is with Shisui, who he can count as this crazy older friend who drenches him daily. They're merely acquaintances, not friends, and it's mystifyingly different, and very, very lonely.

.

.

.

.

They meet again after the end of the first term, where Sasuke sports A(s) and B(s) in all subjects except for the teacher's evaluation of his social interactions, where the Clan has been getting very tense lately, where his brother and even Shisui have been having less and less time to spend with him.

He's able to shower properly now, which is _good_ and _enjoyable_ , but he's still not approaching the river yet. Not yet. Maybe he will, if Shisui and his big brother continue with their patient guidance against Sasuke's fears.

And on his way home, he spots the boy he endearingly calls as Uzuamki once again sitting on the swings, and Sasuke has to stop only to wonder if he sits there all day, which must not be good for his butt.

Naruto looks up and meets his eyes, and Sasuke is understandably surprised when he sees the gloomy look on the blond slowly disappears, only to be replaced with something akin to... hope? Relief?

Sasuke doesn't know.

He stares at Naruto, and watches as the blond opens his mouth to shout.

"Sauske!"

Silence.

 _What._

Sasuke blinks, slightly wide black orbs looking at Naruto's own blue, now lighting with mischief as the boy grins foxily.

"What's wrong, bastard? Cat got your tongue?"

 _That little shit._

He probably shouldn't have called him Uzuamki.

.

.

 **So.**

 **I apologize.**

 **I have writer's block on EVERYTHING, and if you notice oddities in this chapter, it's because I forced myself to write when I really don't want to, because I feel bad, it's been MONTHS, and I haven't even updated EI. I originally intended for this chapter to end in Uchiha Massacre, but well, it'll appear next chapter maybe, probably.**

 **Sakura shouting that she's pretty is grand, ok. While appearance must not be your only source of self esteem, remember Sakura is often belittled for her appearance—her wide forehead—and her standing up and believing in herself that she is pretty enough is a step toward healthy confidence.**

 **And Sasuke is a loner, yay. He's lonely but he likes solitude. He's the type who I think prefer close relationships with few people rather than many relationships at once. While he can be a decent person toward others, he will be very open toward only few people in his life.**

 **So, uh, review? For spaghetti bolognaise, maybe?**


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